Just An Observation
A/N: I feel like I haven't written a Lody-centric fic in a while, so I figured I'd surrender to myself. I'd originally thought of this idea for a Loliver fic, but you know...hehe.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Summary: Cody walks in on London when she's dying her hair and he's his usual, curious, annoying self.
#$&()+
It had been a long day at school, a high school no less, and all Cody Martin wanted to do was enter the hotel suite he shared with his mother and twin brother and unwind.
But of course, since when did anything go his way? It had seemed perfectly normal when he entered the suite, his mother greeted him with a smile as she worked on dinner in the kitchen and his brother pushed him out of the way to get to the couch.
Cody had planned on making a quick stop to the bathroom before sitting down at the kitchen table with a snack and starting on his homework. But as he darted toward the bathroom, his mother stopped him.
"Um, I'm sorry, honey. Our plumbing is all out of whack, and Arwin's in there now fixing it," Carey sighed, apologetically. Cody furrowed his brows and crossed his arms.
"But I have to go..." he replied, his eyes darting around the room as if he were afraid someone would overhear him.
"Oh, well just go up and use London's bathroom. That's what I do, she doesn't mind," Carey replied, busying herself once again with dinner preparations.
Cody groaned inwardly. He had to go up to another floor to use the stinkin' bathroom? He rolled his eyes all the way up to the penthouse, where London solely lived.
He knocked on her door, but received no reply, prompting him to resound his mother's words. 'She doesn't mind...' Hmm, she didn't did she? Cody shrugged and pushed the door open, revealing a clean, empty suite. Cody's mind flashed for a second on the subject of where London could be. He quickly shook the thought and made his way to the bedroom, which contained the door to the bathroom.
He didn't bother knocking, as he assumed London wasn't even at the hotel. But he received a rude awakening when he opened the door.
He spotted London, in nothing more than a thin white tank-top and ratty old blue jeans, leaned forward over the bathtub with the water running and her head under the faucet. Cody jumped a few inches out of fear when he saw her, for he wasn't expecting the surprise.
He found himself staring at her for a few seconds, before snapping out of his trance. It was an odd thing girls did when they dyed their hair, (and Cody knew London was doing this, as he saw a box of expensive hair color sitting next to the sink.)
Their entire body language was different. It became sloppy, and yet graceful all at the same time. N-Not that he was watching London's body language. Cody heard a muffled noise escape from London's lips, realizing she'd just shifted her position. He also realized he was still in the bathroom and she had no idea. Or at least he thought she didn't.
"Having fun, Cody?" She exclaimed, loud enough to make him jump.
"Ugh..I..no, it's not..I was just," Cody stammered, finding himself in an awkward position.
"Waiting to use the bathroom?" She finished for him, receiving a positive reply.
"Oh, well I'll be done in just a few minutes. You can stay and keep me company, if you want," London proposed, running her fingers through her hair to get the chemicals out.
"Sure," Cody answered, a little too quickly. He elected to sit on the side of the bathtub, close enough so he could watch what she was doing, but far enough away so he wouldn't get splashed or hit by London's thrashing limbs.
He noted the little things about London's appearance, such as the way her hair glistened when it was wet. This then prompted Cody to realize he'd never seen London with wet hair, and he wasn't sure exactly why he'd thought that. He was thinking an odd number of things about London, while she was in this most vulnerable state.
He observed the smooth skin of her shoulders, and wondered why he'd overlooked so many times before. He felt the urge to touch them, but he strongly fought it. He also observed the way her hands were spread and pressed against the bottom of the bathtub, her dark fingernail polish sticking out like a zebra in a group of people.
He also noted the way she giggled every time her foot nearly went in the toilet, as she was trying quite hard to keep herself balanced. This caused him to smile himself.
"The water's dark brown," Cody thought aloud, receiving a scoff from London.
"That's beause the color's washing out of my hair," London responded, as if he should have already known that.
"Just an observation," Cody stated, with a sigh.
A few more seconds passed without any exchange of words between the two. Cody was too busy hatching a plan in his head.
"Your foot just went in the toilet again, London," Cody informed her, hiding a knowing smile.
"I'm aware of that, Cody," London replied, rolling her eyes.
"Just an observation," Cody said, chuckling quietly to himself.
"You sure are enjoying observing things, aren't you?" London asked, trying not to be amused.
"Maybe. Umm, your shirt's all wet," Cody answered, knowing what her reaction would be.
"I know that," London replied, with a sigh. Was he trying to play a game, or something?
"Just an observation. Am I getting on your nerves yet, London?" Cody asked, trying to prevent his oncoming laughter. London half-smiled. He wouldn't get to her that easily.
"Not yet," she replied, in a sing-song tone. Cody snapped in defeat, seeking something else to observe. But it was too late, for she had beaten him to the punch, and he hadn't even realized it.
"You're getting so tall," she stated, aimlessly.
"Um, yeah, I know..." Cody trailed off, wishing he hadn't said it. Immediately afterwards, London eased herself up from the bathtub to look Cody in the eye, wrapping a nearby towel around her head.
"Just an observation," London chuckled, beating him at his own game. Cody couldn't help but grin at her thoughtfulness.
"You're getting smarter," Cody commented, receiving a genuine smile from London.
"Is that another observation?" She asked him, squeezing the towel against her head. He nodded in compliance. He watched her turn her head in various directions, which made him figure her neck was sore. He saw that she was clearly wearing no make-up, and that was the first time he'd ever seen her without make-up. Cody wondered if she realized it. He didn't mind it at all. It was as though he was looking at the real London, and not that painted up, Barbie doll act she put on everyday. London may have thought everyone took that as the real London, but Cody didn't buy it for one minute.
"I have one more observation before you go. You look way better like this," he mustered up the courage to say. London smirked.
"Yeah right," she replied, making her way to the door and stepping just outside. Cody followed her a ways.
"Reality is beautiful. And I've never seen you look more real or more beautiful than you do right now," he told her, causing her mouth to fall open slightly. She mouthed unformed words helplessly, as though she was searching for the right thing to say.
"And that? That was a real observation," he said, finally, before closing the door on a shocked London.
A/N: I don't mean to toot my own horn or anything, but I think that was one of my favorites that I've written. Hehe, I hope you liked it, too. If you did (or didn't) tell me why by pressing the prettiful 'Review' button just under this author's note. It's very easy to do, even if you aren't signed in. WOO. But yeah, I love all of you very much, and Happy Holidays to everyone. Ciao bellas.
xoxo Trish