Hi, this is once again another one-shot from me, though my pairing is different from my usual Zack/Maddie. This is Esteban/Maddie, because I've read some stories with them, and they do look cute together. Then I thought, I might as well try it out too, I hope you guys like it. Please R I don't own The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.

An Autumn Night

A walk in the park.

It all started as a simple walk in the park, because Maddie needed someone to talk to. She was crying her eyes out, because her boyfriend broke up with her. She was sobbing, clinging to him. Her makeup was running, leaving black traces at her cheeks. She was freezing, her teeth gritting together, while she stuttered her story to him.

He listened carefully, as the good friend and colleague he was. He hugged her closely, wrapping his strong arms around her. He knew she needed him more than ever now. They'd always been good friends and helped each other. She'd always managed to make him feel better whenever he was feeling down, and he wanted to return that gesture.

Maddie was very special to him. She always had been. She was fun to be around, and she always treated him good. She was beautiful, like no other woman he'd seen, and he wished to tell her that.

He let her by her arm to a bench beneath a huge tree. It was autumn, so the ground was covered in leaves, while the trees were naked. They sat down, close together and he hugged her tightly, to let her know he'd always be there. She smiled and snuggled closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. He felt a shiver ran down his spine, as she let out a content sigh.

It was peace and quiet, except the sound of the wind blowing. It was lovely, and he wouldn't end his day any other way. If he could stay like that all through the night, he'd do it.

They were the only people in the park. There weren't any kids running around, because it was quite late. He'd just gotten off shift, and found Maddie on his way home. She had been sitting by the entrance to the park, only dressed in her work uniform. She'd been staring into space, and he'd immediately known something had happened.

He'd helped her stand up, and forced her to tell him what had happened, while they took a walk in the park. They'd been walking around for hours now, but he didn't mind. At least Maddie was feeling a little bit better.

She let out another sigh next to him, and he looked at her, a smile playing on his lips, "So ms. Maddie?" he said, "Are you feeling better now?"

Maddie shot him a sad smile, she had a glint in her brown eyes, though; "Yeah, a little bit. Thank you Esteban."

"Hey…" he said, lifting her chin up, "Cheer up, Maddie. He's not worth crying over, when he didn't realize how lucky he was. Any guy should be lucky to be with you."

"You really think so?" Maddie questioned, hope in her brown eyes.

"Yes."

"So… I'm not completely a doofus?"

"No." Esteban smiled, "You're always there to make other people happy. You always bring such joy to the Tipton. And I don't like to see you sad, ms. Maddie. So when I saw you sitting there, I didn't know if I should talk to you, but then I said to myself; ´Esteban, you must´."

Maddie giggled a little, her laughter putting a smile on his face, "I'm glad you did, Esteban." She said, "You mean the world to me."

"Do you want to go home now, ms. Maddie?" Esteban asked.

"No…" Maddie said, "And would you please stop calling me ms. Maddie? It feels weird, you're one of my best friends."

"Ui," Esteban said, "You're one of my best friends too, ms. Maddie. But I must treat a woman with respect."

"C'mon, Esteban!" Maddie said, standing up from the bench, "Please stop calling me that, you're bringing me down. We should rather walk for a bit again."

"Okay, Maddie." Esteban said, standing up as well. He brushed off his butt, and looked at Maddie, expectantly, "Where are we going?"

Maddie held out her hand, and took his in it, "Just around…"

They walked around for a bit again, and watched as the wind blew up, and the leaves started flying around. It was beautiful, with all those brown, orange and yellow colours. It fitted her mood perfectly.

Suddenly she saw a huge pile of leaves beneath a huge tree, and she got an idea. She grabbed Esteban's hand tighter, and dragged him into the middle of the pile, the wet leaves clinging to their legs.

"What are we doing, Maddie?" Esteban asked, looking at the blonde teenager. She seemed much happier now, and he was glad that he'd managed to cheer her up for a bit.

"I remember when I was a kid…" she said, slowly walking around in the huge pile of leaves, "…and I would come to the park at this time of year. I'd go here with my friends a regular sunny Saturday, and we'd jump around in the leaves. It used to be so much fun. It's sad, those times are over."

"Who says you can't jump in the leaves?" Esteban asked, shooting her a suggestive look.

"I'm way too old to be doing stuff like that!" Maddie said, "I'd feel so stupid! Besides…" she trailed off, "There's no-one to jump with, and it ain't funny to do it alone. It's better with company."

"I'll jump with you, Maddie." Esteban suggested, reaching out for her.

She scooted closer to him, taking his hands again, "Really? That's so sweet."

"Anything for you, Maddie." Esteban smiled, squeezing her hands tightly, "You must know, you mean a lot to me."

Maddie's smile grew wider, and happiness floated in her brown pools, "Thank you Esteban!" she leaned in and gave him a hug, before pulling away from him again, "You mean a lot to me too. You're always there to help me. Always."

"Well, that's because I love you, Maddie." Esteban said, "And you're always there for me too. Like that time I failed fighting that robber. You were the only one who didn't make fun of me."

"Well, that's because I love you… Esteban." Maddie said, shooting him one of her smiles yet again.

His smile grew too, and she slowly tiptoed up, and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. Then she pulled away, and started jumping up and down in the leaves with him, their hands linked together.

Because yeah, even the saddest days can turn out great, and even the smallest smiles can grow wider, but nothing can ever be compared to an autumn night, spend with the person you love the most.

I know, cheesy, so not my usual style, though I have been doing a lot of that lately, I dunno why. Then I must just say, review, review, please review? It always mean a lot to me, when you do so, because that means someone has read what I've written, and that's just… But anyway, many hugs; Stessa ;p