A/N: This is a "short" one shot. And by short, I mean shorter than a whole story. It's not officially short since it's about 9 ½ pages. lol. So, I thought of this idea around the same time I thought of the idea for Never. I never got around to writing it then though but I saved the little piece of paper where I'd written down my idea and I decided to write it now. Unlike every other story I've written, this one is not about Dana and Logan. I kind of wanted to hint at some Dana and Logan a little but there isn't really anything. This is a Zoey and Chase story. I probably could've taken my idea and made it Dana and Logan instead, but I like it better as Zoey and Chase. Hopefully you guys will too. Oh and this story takes place in the first season, but after the last episode. But that's easy to figure out since I pretty much basically say that in the story. lol. Well, enjoy this not-so-short one shot! Oh and the italics is because it's a flashback. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Zoey 101 or any of the characters.
Not the Same
"Alright, sir. You may see her now."
"Hey, I have an idea!" Zoey exclaimed. "Let's go down to the beach!"
"That's such a great idea! Isn't that such a great idea? I think that is such a great idea! I love your ideas!" Nicole gushed.
"Yeah, that's a great idea, Zo! So, who's coming?" Chase asked.
"Ooh, me!" Nicole chirped.
"I'm in too," Michael decided.
Dana rolled her eyes, but nodded her head. "There's nothing better to do," she declared.
"What about a make out session with me?" Logan suggested.
Dana gave him a disgusted look. "I'd rather spend 24 hours locked in a closet with Nicole when she's had 10 cups of coffee," she retorted.
Logan glared at her. Chase jumped in quickly. "So, Logan, are you coming?" he prompted.
"Yeah, whatever," Logan replied.
"Great! Hey Zo, do you want to see if Dustin wants to come?" Chase questioned.
"He can't. I talked to him earlier and he said he had plans. He wouldn't tell me what though," Zoey recalled.
"Well let's go!" Nicole shouted.
"Get AWAY from me Logan!" Dana yelled.
Logan just smirked. "You know you want me," he taunted.
Dana shoved him out of the way and began to walk away. Zoey grabbed her arm to try to stop her but Dana yanked it away. She soon disappeared in the distance. Zoey sighed. "I'll go talk to her," she decided.
"Want me to come?" Chase offered.
"No, it's ok. Oh and Logan, next time we go to the beach – you're not invited," Zoey declared.
Logan just rolled his eyes as Zoey walked off. Chase turned to his roommate. "Why do you always have to be such a pain?" Chase asked him.
"Why do you have to be such a coward?" Logan shot back, referring to Chase's hidden feelings for Zoey.
Chase's face flushed a deep red. "I don't know what you're talking about," he lied.
Before Logan could respond, there was suddenly a scream, shortly followed by another. The remaining four on the beach exchanged glances, then took off running. When they arrived at the sight of the scream, they saw a horrific sight. Chase felt his stomach churn.
When Dana had stormed off, she'd climbed up these rocks that leveled out on top. Now she was half way down the rocks, kneeling on one. Lying next to her was Zoey. Her head was cracked open and the blood was dripping out. She was unconscious and one of her arms was twisted in a very unnatural looking way.
Dana was close to tears. "Well what are you all doing staring?" she snapped. "Somebody call an ambulance!"
Michael quickly took out his cell phone and dialed 911. The shock was wearing off on all of them and their true emotions were showing. Nicole was sobbing as she ran over to her friend. "Don't touch her!" Dana warned.
Chase hurried over after Nicole. Looking at Zoey's bloody and mangled body was terrible, yet he couldn't tear his eyes away. "What happened?" he croaked.
Dana turned her head so they couldn't see her face. "She was coming up after me," she began, her voice faltering slightly. "Then I heard a scream and saw her fly down about a third of the way then…then hit the rocks. Head first. Then I screamed. She must've slipped."
Dana bit her lip to keep from crying. Logan finally moved and went over to her, in an attempt to comfort her. He was about three feet away from her but she turned and shot him a death glare. "Don't come near me!" she screamed. "This is all your fault! If you hadn't been such a jerk, I never would've gotten mad, and I wouldn't have left, and Zoey wouldn't have gone after me, and she wouldn't be here probably half-DEAD!"
Logan didn't come even a millimeter closer. He was digesting what Dana had said. His face paled and he looked horrified. Before anything more could be said, Michael joined the group. "An ambulance is coming!" he announced.
Chase slowly entered the hospital room. Zoey lay on the bed. Her head was wrapped in bandages, her arm was in a cast, and her eyes were still closed. The doctor followed him in and closed the door. "Have a seat," he declared, offering Chase a chair.
Wearily, Chase sat down. "I-is she going to be ok?" he stammered.
The doctor sighed. "Well, I have good news and bad news," he began. Chase began to sweat. "The good news is that she's alive and well for the most part. She'll be awake soon. She had to get stitches, but that went well and she didn't lose too much blood. Also, she broke her left arm, but that will heal."
"What's the bad news?" Chase managed to choke out.
"She suffered a severe concussion. She basically has a severe case of amnesia. When she wakes up, she won't remember anything. Also…it might be permanent. She might never remember anything that happened before the accident. But there's another possibility. She might have the amnesia for a while, but then she might wake up one day and be fine. Except she won't remember anything that happened while she had the amnesia. She'll just remember everything from before the accident," the doctor explained.
Ok. It could be worse. Chase told himself. "Ok. Thank you doctor," he replied.
"I'll go break the news to your other friends," the doctor declared.
Chase nodded and watched him leave the room. When the doctor was gone, he moved the chair over to Zoey's bedside. He took her hand gently and began to stroke her palm. "Zo…Zoey…please, wake up soon. Please be ok," he begged. "I'm sorry I let this happen. I know you'd probably tell me it wasn't my fault, and maybe it wasn't, but I could've stopped it. If I'd gone with you, maybe I could've stopped you from trying to climb the rocks. Or maybe I could've caught you. Or maybe I could've been the one to fall instead of you."
Chase sighed and closed his eyes. Images of Zoey lying on the rocks flashed through his head. The memory was permanently seared in his brain. It couldn't be in Zoey's. Maybe she was better off that way. But then again, she couldn't remember all the good things either. He heard the sound of the door opening and turned around.
Dustin entered the room. "Is she ok?" he whimpered.
"Yeah. She's sleeping. The doctor tell you guys everything?" Chase asked, motioning Dustin over to him.
Dustin hesitantly walked over. "Yeah, he told us," he responded. He reached the bed and looked at his sister. He stared for a moment; his eyes glued to her head, before he ripped them away and turned to Chase. "What happened? Dana and Logan are both saying it's their fault. Dana's almost crying. They're out there arguing over it."
Chase felt his throat close up. "Logan was, well, being Logan. And Dana got mad at him and stormed off. She went and climbed up these rocks to get away from everyone. Zoey went after her to try to calm her down. So…Nicole, Michael, Logan, and I were sitting on the beach when we heard a scream. Dana didn't see it, but she figured Zoey must've tried to follow her up and slipped. Then Dana said she turned around at hearing Zoey's scream and…and saw Zoey fly about a third of the way down the rocks, then land…on her head…on the rocks. Then Dana screamed, and the rest of us showed up soon after that," he informed Dustin.
Dustin looked back at his sister and his eyes began to well up. Chase put his arm around him comfortingly. "She'll be ok," Chase croaked, near tears himself.
Dustin nodded his head. Suddenly Zoey began to stir. Soon her eyes blinked open and she looked around the room in confusion. Her eyes fell on Chase and Dustin and a look of surprised appeared on her face. "Who are you?" she questioned.
Dustin began to cry silently. Chase felt a single tear run down his cheek. Zoey watched them, concerned. "What's wrong?" she inquired.
Chase blinked back anymore tears. "Uhh, I'm Chase. Chase Matthews. This is Dustin Brooks. And you're Zoey Brooks. Dustin's your little brother, and I'm your best friend. You go to Pacific Coast Academy – a boarding school in California. You, me, and four of our other friends who you can…re-meet in a minute, went to the beach. One of our friends, Logan Reese, was being a jerk. He's a jerk a lot. So, Dana Cruz, another friend, got mad at him. Another common thing. So, she got mad and stormed off. You, being the sweet and caring friend that you are, went after her to calm her down. Dana…she'd climbed up these rocks. She said you tried to follow her but…must've slipped. You screamed, and she turned around and saw you fly down about a third of the way, and hit your head on a rock. She screamed and hurried down to you. Me, Logan, and our two other friends – Nicole Bristow and Michael Barrett – were on the beach still. We heard you scream, then we heard Dana scream, so we came running. You cracked your head open and had to get stitches. And you broke your left arm. But that's all fine. But…you have amnesia. The doctor said…you won't remember anything when you wake up, which you just did. And…he said that it'll either stay that way, or maybe one day you'll wake up and remember everything from before the accident, but nothing from when you had the amnesia," he summarized.
Zoey was silent as she took everything in. Could all this really have happened? "Tell me more about my life," she decided finally.
Chase took a deep breath. "Well, your roommates are Nicole Bristow and Dana Cruz. You guys live in Butler Hall, room 101. I was your first friend at PCA. You just came this year, because this is the first year they've let girls in. The first time I saw you, I rode my bike into a flagpole," he recalled, getting a giggle from Zoey. He smiled. "We became fast friends. And between the six of us – you, me, Nicole, Dana, Logan, and Michael – a lot of things have happened." Chase went on to summarize the guys versus girls basketball game, when Dana and Nicole kicked Zoey out and she went to live with Quinn, the time when Logan gave them a giant teddy bear that turned out to have a webcam in it. He told her about the time she defended Dustin from a bully, their adventures during prank week, the Jet-X competition, the drama with the play. He recalled the time the two of them had helped set up Quinn and Mark, when Zoey had organized a fundraiser to get Drake Bell to play at Spring Fling, Zoey's backpack invention that Stacy stole but Zoey then beat her by creating a better version, playing disc golf to get out of running laps in gym. He told her everything that happened at the school dance, even though he was still ashamed about tricking her into telling him how she would answer the personality test. Finally, he told her about their adventurous end of year beach party.
Zoey listened intently to every story, getting a feel of who she was. Or at least had been. When Chase was finished, she smiled. "Wow, we sure have exciting lives," she commented.
Chase smiled as well. "Yeah, I guess we do," he agreed.
"Tell me about our school. PCA, right?" she checked.
"Right," Chase answered. He vividly described the beauty of the campus. "You'll be able to see it soon enough. I'm sure you'll be out of here soon. In fact, I'll go ask the doctor when you can come back."
"No, Chase, you stay here. I'll go," Dustin proclaimed.
"Bye Dustin!" Zoey exclaimed with a smiled and a wave.
Dustin forced a smile. "Bye Zo," he mumbled before rushing out of the room.
When the door closed behind him, Zoey sighed. "This is weird for him. It's weird for me too. And probably weird for you and everyone else. Do you think I'll ever remember all these things you've been telling me about?" she quizzed.
Chase hesitated. "I don't know," he confessed finally. "I hope you will but…it was scary, Zo. Seeing you on those rocks…the blood around you…your arm twisted weird." He gave an involuntary shiver. "I…I'm just so glad you're ok. Even if you never remember the past, I'm just glad you're alive. I-I don't know what I'd do without you Zo."
Zoey smiled. "You're so sweet Chase. I can see why we were best friends," she remarked.
Chase smiled back. He took a deep breath. "You know…these may not be the best of circumstances but…Zoey, I have something to tell you," he blurted out.
"Ok. What is it?" she prompted.
Chase took another deep breath. "Well, I guess now's as good a time as any…Zoey, I love you," he revealed.
Zoey was shocked. She paused for a moment. "Wow Chase…do I love you too?" she wondered.
Chase suddenly realized how stupid he was. What was he doing? She had amnesia and he was telling her that he loved her! And he said, "now's as good a time as any" which was obviously NOT true. He could feel his face flushing a deep red. "I'm sorry Zo. I shouldn't have said that," he told her quickly.
Zoey frowned. "No, Chase, wait. You meant it, didn't you?" she asked.
Chase sighed. "Of course I meant it Zo. You're amazing, no matter what," he complimented.
Zoey felt her cheeks gaining a slightly pink tinge. "Well then give me some time to get to know you…again," she decided. "I like you Chase. I'm just not sure how."
It had been one week since the accident. Zoey was back at PCA, and slowly gaining back the experiences she could no longer remember. She was used to Dana and Logan's constant bickering. She was used to Nicole's screams, ramblings, and bubbly personality. She was used to Michael's potato chip obsession. She was used to Chase's goofiness. She was used to Dustin's fear of animals. She was used to Quinn's weird Quinnventions. Things were getting similar to the way they were, but they weren't the same. No one knew if they ever would be.
"So, what did you think of classes today, Zo?" Chase asked as they walked towards Butler Hall after their last class of the day.
"Pretty similar to all the other days," she answered. Then she stopped walking and turned to look at Chase.
Chase stopped walking too and looked at her curiously. "Something up?" he questioned.
"Kind of," Zoey began. "Chase…I've been thinking about what you told me all week. What you said in the hospital room. And…I've been trying to figure out how I feel now, and how I think I would've felt before. I've thought about everything you told me about stuff from before the accident and…I think I might love you too Chase. The me now, and the me you first fell in love with."
"Y-you do?" Chase stuttered.
"I-I think so. I'm just…worried. You fell in love with the real me. The me without amnesia. What if the me with amnesia isn't the same?" she inquired.
Chase paused. He hadn't really thought of that. Looking at her again though reminded him why. "You're still Zoey. You always will be," he assured her.
Zoey smiled. "So, then…are we dating?" she quizzed.
Chase was surprised, but soon wore a grin that took up his whole face. "Zoey, would you like to be my girlfriend?" he wondered.
Zoey smiled. "Yes Chase, I'd love to," she decided.
One month. They'd been dating for one month. One month andfour days to be exact. They both couldn't be happier. And all their friends were thrilled for them. Zoey seemed almost the way she had been before the accident. Nevertheless, it still wasn't the same. At this point, they all thought for the most part that it never would be.
It was a sunnyJune afternoon. Nicole and Michael were in the girls' lounge working on a project they had. Dana and Logan were harassing each other in the courtyard. Zoey and Chase were cuddled up in Chase's dorm, watching a movie. As the movie went on, Zoey slowly drifted off to sleep. When the movie ended, Chase looked over at her to see her sleeping peacefully on his shoulder. Smiling, he turned off the TV, and joined her in sleeping.
A few hours later, Zoey woke up. She blinked her eyes opened and looked around the room. What was she doing in the guys' room? She realized she was leaning against Chase, and he had his arm around her. He was asleep. "Chase," she whispered, nudging him gently.
Chase woke up slowly. As he opened his eyes and saw Zoey, he smiled. "Hey Zo," he greeted.
"Chase, what's going on?" she asked.
Chase gave her a quizzical look. "What do you mean?" he questioned.
"How did I get here?" Zoey inquired.
"We were watching a movie, Zo," he told her. "Remember?" As soon as he said that last word, it occurred to him. "Actually Zo, what's the last thing you do remember?"
Zoey thought about it. "We were all on the beach. And Dana got mad at Logan and stormed off," she recalled. "So how'd I end up here?"
Chase grinned. "Zoey! You're back!" he shouted, throwing his arms around her in a hug.
Zoey hugged him back, although she was extremely confused. "Where'd I go?" she wondered.
Chase laughed. "You didn't exactly go anywhere," he informed her. "You had amnesia."
Zoey was surprised. "Amnesia? What happened?" she exclaimed.
Chase explained what happened. He told the story from where she went after Dana, to what the doctor had told him. When he finished, he hesitated, then couldn't hold it in any longer. "Do you…remember…anything…from when you had the amnesia?" he asked, trying to sound casual.
Zoey thought it over, trying to remember anything. "Well…I think I had this weird dream while I was unconscious or something. I had this dream that we were dating," she realized.
Chase nearly choked. "Y-you did?" he stammered. He swallowed, hard. "W-was it…good or bad?"
"Well, I don't know. I mean, it seems weird since you're my best friend and all but…in my dream…I seemed happy," she recalled.
Chase took a deep breath. "Well…what if I told you it wasn't a dream?" he questioned.
Zoey's eyes widened. "What? Did we…" she trailed off.
Chase forced himself to continue. He told her of everything that had happened in the hospital room, and when they'd started dating a week later. When he finished his recap, Zoey sat there, stunned. "Y-you…love me?" she checked.
Chase blushed furiously. "Yeah, Zo. I do," he confessed.
Zoey reminded herself to breathe. "Wow. Well, I was happy with you before. So…why shouldn't I be now?" she declared.
Chase couldn't believe his ears. "Wait, Zo, are you saying…do you…are we…" he stumbled, trying to find the words.
Zoey smiled. "Well, if you still want to date me, I'd date you," she informed him.
Chase's eyes widened. "Yes! Of course, I want to keep dating you!" he shouted.
Zoey laughed. "Well then you can start by kissing me," she announced.
Chase couldn't have been more shocked. He quickly regained himself, seeing as he did not want to miss out on this opportunity. They both leaned in slowly and their lips met. As they did, Zoey knew she'd made the right decision. Maybe amnesia wasn't so bad after all.
A/N: Well, that's my first Zoey and Chase one shot! I hope you guys liked it! Review and let me know what you think! Oh and I don't remember how I got this idea, but once I thought of it, I was inspired by the movie "50 First Dates." Not sure why I thought of the idea in the first place though seeing as I saw that movie probably a year or two ago. lol. Ok, so, review and let me know what you thought of this! Thanks! Bye!
DramaQueen3303
