I don't own the show, or any of the bands or lyrics mentioned here... Lol. Cody's POV.
I stared at the ceiling for what seemed like ages. I closed my eyes, but no sudden urge to fall asleep came to me. I opened my eyes again and looked at the clock. 1:21 AM. This sucks, I thought. I tried yawning, but I bet I just looked like a fish gasping for breath. There was a policy against making too much noise at night, so I couldn't watch TV or listen to the radio. I tossed and turned, trying to find a comfortable position, but ended up throwing the blankets off of me. I got up and went over to the window.
It was a very clear night, with an almost full moon. I couldn't think of the technical term for it, and I knew it was going to kill me until I thought of it. The moon and stars illuminated what I could see of Playa de Losers. There was the pool, the ping-pong tables, the tennis courts in the distance... Everything was lifeless, obviously, because everyone was asleep. Everyone but me.
Suddenly, I wanted to go out there. I needed the fresh air, and to stretch my legs. The room seemed too small and stuffy now. I slid on my flip-flops, grabbed a room key, and stepped out into the quiet hallway. As silently as possible, I made my way to the elevator, then realized it doesn't work at night. Sighing, I walked to the other end of the hallway and into the pitch black staircase. The door clicked shut behind me, and I hesitantly took a step forward. Lights clicked on, blinding me. Squinting in the intense light, I made my way down to the first floor. The lobby was vacant, and the only light came from a small lamp in the corner. I hurried through there and pushed open the front door.
The cool, night air filled my lungs. I stood there for a minute, soaking it all in. Then, I slowly made my way over to the pool. The water was so clear and still for once, it was breathtaking. I dipped my toe in, hoping for it to feel as amazing as it looked, but it didn't. I continued walking.
Everything seemed so calm and peaceful. I realized I could do anything I wanted with nobody watching, but I didn't want to disturb the eerie peace. I walked all the way around the property, looking at everything. I was just about to go inside again, when I noticed something on the basketball court. I stared at it, and realized it was a person, sprawled on the ground. I gasped, thinking it was a dead body, and slowly made myself walk towards it. As I got closer, I knew they were alive, because they were softly singing. I stood there and listened for a minute, knowing the song well.
"I've given everyone I know
A good reason to go.
I was surprised you stuck around,
Long enough to figure out...
That it's all alright.
I guess it's all alright.
I got nothin' left inside of my chest,
But it's all alright..."
"You're a Fun. fan?" I asked, stepping onto the court.
Noah looked up at me in surprise, then shrugged and gazed back up at the stars. "They're a good band."
I layed next to him, on my back with my limbs stretched out like a pancake, just like he was. "Can't sleep either?" I asked.
"No, I just happen to like the night better than the day."
"Like a vampire?" He glared at me, then realized I was joking and smiled.
"Yeah, something like that."
We layed in a, not awkward, but companionable silence, until I exclaimed, "Waxing gibbous!"
"What?"
"I remembered the current moon phase. It's waxing gibbous."
"Congratulations! You should get an award for remembering a fifth grade science lesson."
It was silent again, and he started humming "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay.
"So I take it you like Coldplay too?"
"Not as much as others, but yes," he replied.
"What would 'others' be?" I tried to make conversation, because I didn't like the silence.
"The Presidents of the United States, The Fray, Snow Patrol, The Beatles..." he trailed off.
"Dang."
"What?"
"Those are my favorites too."
"Maroon 5," he continued.
"Phoenix," I supplied.
"Mumford and Sons."
"Adele."
He snorted at that. "Really?"
"Have you ever listened to her? She's amazing!" I started to sing "We could've had it all... Rollin' in the deep..."
"Okay, okay! I agree with you! Just stop singing!" He laughed, and I joined in.
"So, you ever play?" I asked, gesturing to the basketball hoop.
"I'm bad at sports, remember?"
I hopped to my feet and started looking around for a basketball. When I spotted one, I ran after it and brought it back to Noah, who was still on his back.
"Let's play!"
"No."
"C'mon! I'm no Danny Manning either, plus it's just the two of us out here! Please?"
He sighed in defeat, then held out his hand for me to help him up. "But I don't want to play a whole game, okay?"
"Okay, we'll just... do a free-throw competition! We each shoot five, then whoever gets the most, wins!" I know that's not my most original and creative idea for a fun game, but I was tired. Cut me some slack. I looked at him expectantly, and he agreed and let me go first. I stepped up to the line and proudly sank three baskets. I tossed him the ball, wearing a smug look.
He dribbled the ball a few times, aimed, and...
It went right through the hoop. I stared at him, amazed, as he made another basket...
And another...
After his fifth and final basket went through the hoop, without even touching the rim, I said, "You little liar."
"Basketball genes run through the family." He shrugged. "And it's night. I focus better in the calm."
"You... I don't even have words for you..."
He chuckled. "I guess you discovered my hidden talent. But that was nothing compared to what my older brothers can do with a basketball."
"Why don't you tell anyone that you have game? I bet you're better than everyone here! And if you had competed in the dodgeball game in the fourth episode... You could've won the season!"
He absently twirled the basketball and looked at the ground. "I guess I... I want to be remembered for my brains, instead of being just another athlete." It was in that moment that I realized... We were wearing almost the exact same pajamas! Black athletic shorts and a plain t-shirt. His shirt was blue and mine was red, but both were very faded. Funny, the things you notice when you're tired. But I didn't want to ditch Noah to go sleep. He didn't seem to have many friends, plus I was kind of having fun. Why not take an unresponsible advantage of this night, am I right?
"Suit yourself. Hey, want to go raid the kitchen?"
He smirked. "I'm a teenager. Of course."
"Prepare to be amazed!" I exclaimed, about to switch the blender on.
"Wait! The top!" Noah yelled, rushing to slam the cap on it.
"Oh! Thanks, bro," I said, then I blended.
We sat down with chocolate-vanilla-oreo-peanut butter milkshakes. I immediately started to gulp it down.
"Mmmm... Just like we make at home."
Noah took a sip, then made a face. "It's too sweet for me." He then started to cut up a banana and toss it in. "Better."
"I think you're crazy," I stated.
"And I think you'll do anything for chocolate. Or any kind of sugar. Am I right?"
I smiled. "How'd you know?"
"It doesn't take many brain cells to figure that one out, honey."
I had my milkshake finished within minutes. I hopped up, put my dirty glass in the sink, and started looking around. Chef never let anyone back here, but at some point, we've all been in here. It's entertaining watching Chef blow a fuse when he finds out someone's been in his sacred kitchen. Usually, when you visit, you either leave something nasty in the fridge, or you take a souvenir. My eyes landed on Chef's secret drawer.
I gasped. "Noah, look!"
"What? A drawer with a key in it?"
"No, Chef's drawer that he always keeps locked with the key in it! Oh my god!"
"What's so special about a drawer?"
"Have you ever been in here before?" I asked.
"Well... no."
I was shocked at that. You must really be a loser if you've never snuck in here before. Even Ezekiel has. Anyway, I found some oven mitts and slid them on. Carefully, I turned the key and opened the drawer.
"Oven mitts?" he asked.
"In case he dusts it for prints or something! I'd be dead!" I took a look in the drawer. "Room keys?"
"No, those are car keys," Noah corrected. We looked at each other for a minute, then ran off to the garage. That was always locked too, but now we have keys!
Instead of being fancy sports cars like we all assumed was being protected in the garage, it was just a bunch of golf carts. "Well, golf carts are still fun!" I said. I was naturally an optimist. We decided to race, so we each chose a cart.
"Wait! Mine's out of gas!" Noah complained.
"So is mine."
"This one is too!"
"Same with this one! What the heck?"
Finally, I found one with a full tank of gas. "I got one!" I victoriously shouted.
"I'm going to have to ride with you then. The rest are duds." He climbed into the passenger seat next to me. Well, there wasn't a passenger seat, since it's a golf cart, but you know what I mean.
"Alright, let's do this."
"Pedal to the medal!" Noah yelled.
I slammed my foot on the gas, and we took off.
"Yeah!" Noah screamed.
"Woo-hoo!" I cheered. The wind rushed through my ears and Noah's hair flew back. I chose the longest route around Playa to maximize our time with the cart. It was exhilarating. Note to self- don't trust sugar-high teens at the wheel.
The pool was coming up fast. I slammed on the brakes and turned to the right. Inches from the water, we tipped over. I lost hold of the wheel and landed on top of Noah. "Sorry!"
"Get off of me!" He tried to sound angry, but he was laughing. I climbed up and out of the cart, but he pushed me forward. I toppled into the pool. His head poked up from the top of the sideways golf cart, and he was obviously biting back a laugh.
"Oh no. You're going to pay!" Noah started to jump out and run away, but I caught up to him and yanked him in the pool with me. He squealed in protest.
"Way to go! Now I'm all wet!"
"Hey, you started it!"
"If it weren't for your bad driving skills..." He splashed me. I splashed back. Soon, we were in an all-out war. Noah found some water guns behind the bar and tossed me one.
"Oh, you're going down!" I yelled.
"Oh shit," Noah muttered, then he sprinted off. I ran after him, eager to pelt him with water. I was right on his trail, then he turned around and squirted me in the face. I had to stop and rub my eyes, and by the time I looked up, he had disappeared. Dang, I lost him! After looking around for a but, I decided to trick him.
"Hey Noah! Wanna play ping-pong?"
"Okay," he said from behind me, and I turned around and soaked him.
"Ha! I win!"
"Fine, but I'm going to kick your butt at ping-pong."
We ran off to the ping-pong tables. Within seconds, we were in the middle of a close match. After I lost, we played again. After that, a third game. We kept playing and playing until someone shouted out, "Hey morons!"
I didn't recognize who it was, but Noah said, "What, Eva? I'm trying to concentrate!"
"What're you doing?"
"Playing ping-pong!"
"At six in the morning?"
I stopped to look at her and the ball whizzed past me. "It's six in the morning?"
"Yeah. The time I always come down here to work-out."
Noah looked at me, shocked. "We've been out here for over four hours?"
I nodded my head. "Well, I'm just gonna head back to bed then. Bye Eva!" I waved.
"Whatever," she replied.
Noah followed me back inside. "Well, that was fun," I commented.
"Yeah," he agreed. After a minute, he said, "Let's never talk about this again."
"Yeah."
I don't know what inspired me to write this, but I hoped you liked it!