Chapter 44
I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.
Wait...In this story, I actually created some of them, so I do own them.
Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.
And as for the ones I did create, who they are is up to me, so...
After dinner, everyone headed back to the same dance club Cody and Bailey had attempted to go to the night before. But this time, the strongest drink either of them had was a Coke Zero on the rocks. But, they actually had a lot of fun anyways. They danced, and they took breaks when they needed them. And while they rested, they continued getting to know each other. Cody filled Maddie in on more of the people from the Tipton and what they were doing now. And she was as surprised as anyone that Carey and Arwin might actually be dating. At one point, the topic of the conversation shifted to Maddie and Trevor's wedding, and Cody began laughing.
"You know, I still think its crazy that you two are going to be married. Maddie, you're as liberal as they come while you told us Trevor has an alter built to Ronald Reagan..."
Maddie laughed. "I know, but sometimes you can't help yourself..."
Trevor smiled. "Aren't you two the same way? I mean, Bailey is from the land of Bob Dole while Cody is from the land of the Kennedy Clan..."
Bailey smiled. "I admit, I do have to very conservative views on some topics like family values and in some instances, Economics, but in other areas, I'm actually quite liberal. I'm all for protecting the environment, and I'm against any law that discriminates against someone based on sex, race, national origin, age or sexual orientation. I believe in doing what's right for everyone and not picking on someone because they aren't what is considered 'normal'..."
Cody smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. He looked over at Maddie. "I know what you mean about not being able to help yourself..."
Maddie laughed. "I can see that, but you two are opposites in a lot of ways. The city boy and the country girl for starters."
"I'll have you know I've spent time on the farm...and I was completely useless..."
Bailey shook her head. "Don't listen to him. He cooked dinner one night, and after that, he was golden with my family. Besides, it was in the middle of winter. Not much for him to do and be useless at. And despite what he says, I was way worse getting use to city life. Traffic in Boston and New York about freaked me out..."
This time Cody shook his head. "Now its time not to listen to her. Within a day, she fit right in. Plus, she speaks several languages, so she won't get taken advantage of by cab drivers. Besides, speaking of families, I think Mom likes her better than she does me..."
Maddie laughed. "Don't have to tell me about that. If you're good with a guy's Mom, everything will be smooth sailing..."
Trevor laughed too. "Just the opposite with us. It took a while for Maddie's Dad to come around on me..."
Cody nodded. "I think Bailey's Dad likes me..."
Bailey interrupted him. "He does..."
"But I got 'the speech'..."
Trevor nodded and laughed. "We all have. I even got one from Maddie's little brother. And somewhere down the road, we'll be giving it to some kid trying to date our daughters."
Maddie spoke up. "Before I forget, you are coming to the wedding this summer, right?"
Cody smiled. "Of course...Is it too late for me to add a plus one and bring Bailey with me?"
Maddie smiled. "Of course it isn't. I would be offended if you didn't bring her with you. And tell Zack to bring his girlfriend too. I'd like to meet her as well and see with my own eyes the girl who finally tamed Zack..."
After a while, it got late, and Cody and Bailey were getting tired. Swimming and lounging around all day had wore them out, so about midnight, they bid goodnight to Maddie and Trevor and headed back to their cabin. Both changed for bed and got comfortable in each other's arms. But something Maddie had said was weighing heavily on Bailey's mind.
"Cody?"
He opened his eyes. "Yeah?"
Bailey turned to face him. "Maddie's wedding will be this summer. We've never talked about what happens this summer. I assume you're going back to Boston, and I'll be going back to Kettlecorn..."
Cody thought about that and sighed. "That does pose a problem, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, it does...How do we go from seeing each other 24/7 to not seeing each other for almost four months?"
Cody paused to think. "Well, we'll have our phones, so we can talk everyday. And our laptops have webcams, so we can use those. But neither one of those will be remotely the same as holding you in my arms or being able to kiss you..."
Bailey frowned. "I know..."
"Well, Maddie is getting married the weekend after the fourth of July, so you could come up to Boston for a week. Of course, you'd stay with us..."
Bailey nodded. "True...And the Mulch Festival is in early June. I'd love it if you could come to Kettlecorn for it..."
Cody smiled. "Consider it done. I may have to make a fool of myself on Yay Me! again, but I'll be there..."
Bailey smiled back at him. "You'd really do that for me?"
"Of course I would. And look at it this way. We'll still be together through early May, then I'll visit you in Kettlecorn in June, you'll visit me in Boston in July, and then in August it will be time for us to go back to school again. You can even come back to Boston early again if you want..."
"Will once a month be enough for us though?"
Cody smiled again. "Not for me. I'll never get enough of you. But, we'll do the best we can. Besides, it will give me the chance to write you actual love letters..."
Bailey smiled. "I like the sound of that. Something I can keep and read over and over when I'm missing you."
"Well, we will still be able to see each other over the internet. You'll probably still see me enough that you'll be sick of me..."
"Never..."
"Besides, I do already have a summer job lined up. I'm working in a clinic down the street from the hotel. In addition to making money to supplement the scholarship stipend I have, I read where medical schools love seeing work experience in the medical field. Plus, you need a doctor to recommend you."
Bailey nodded. "I know. Doc Johnson agreed for me to come work for him this summer for the same reasons..."
Cody smiled. "And once the summer's over, we'll be back at Yale. And I'll request my same room again. We'll move your things in the first day, and then we'll be together again like we are now..."
Bailey smiled back. "I like the sound of that. I'm sure Monica will like having a room to herself again."
Cody pulled her into his arms. "I know this summer will suck. But, I think it will make us stronger in the end. You know the old saying...absence makes the heart grow fonder...and I'm already really fond of you as it is."
Bailey smiled. "I know...I'll probably be insufferable for the first couple of days home without you there with me..."
"Well, you're here with me right now. I say we enjoy every moment we have here on the ship were we have nothing to do but focus on each other..."
Bailey leaned up and kissed him. "I always knew you were smart..."
The next morning, they were up bright and early. They grabbed a quick breakfast and were off the boat by 8:00 AM. Before leaving for the trip, they had planned out everything they wanted to see in San Juan. And after a a full morning of seeing plazas, museums, gardens and everything else they wanted to see, they returned to the boat for lunch and to change into their swimsuits. At about one that afternoon, they were back off the boat and on their way to the beach.
To Cody, the beach was fun, but he had been to one before. He had even spent time frolicking on the beach in southern California with Zack, Maddie, London, his Mom and Moseby. But to Bailey, it was her first time on one. Kansas was a thousand miles from the closest coast. So, when they arrived, she just stopped to take everything in. Cody noticed this and smiled.
"Take your time."
Bailey turned to him and smiled back. "Just never been this close to one before..."
"Why don't we go get a closer look?"
Bailey nodded, and they made their way out onto the sand. Finding a spot, they opened up the bag with them and rolled out the beach blanket they rented from the boat. Once it was out, they both again stripped down to their swimsuits. And once again, they helped each other apply sunscreen. And as he was rubbing her back, Cody spoke up.
"You know, in just a couple of days, you're already getting a nice tan..."
Bailey turned and smiled. "You too..."
Cody laughed. "At least London can't say we have pasty skin this time..."
Bailey laughed too. "I know, and I think your hair has been sun bleached and is even blonder..."
"Well, I see some blonde highlights in yours now too. So, what do you think? Lay out and get more sun or go try out Mother Nature's wave pool?"
"I say we go try the ocean. I mean, have you ever seen water that blue before?"
For the rest of the afternoon, they alternated playing in the ocean and laying out and getting more sun. They even spent some time building a sand castle. But knowing those two, the modeled it after the Palace of Wurttemberg in Germany, and it was as close to a perfect replica as they could get from looking at pictures on their smart phones.
Cody turned to Bailey. "You know...Einstein was born just steps from this place."
She smiled. "I know."
When the sun began to set, both slipped their clothes back on and packed up their things back into their bag. After catching a cab back to the boat, they returned to their cabin to get cleaned up. Even though the day on the beach had been fun, they soon discovered they had sand in places that weren't very comfortable. Once changed back into casual clothes, they went out for dinner again. And after dinner, they just took it easy. For a long time, they just laid in a deck chair together looking at the stars. Of course, they did share more than a few kisses.
Tuesday morning arrived, and the ship was back at sea again. They were both looking forward to their next stop – Philipsburg, St. Maarten, but it was still a day away. So, they spent the day like they had their first day at sea – on the lido deck. This time, they spent a lot of time in an inner tube built for two and circling the lazy river. Of course, they did engage in a very competitive game of mini golf that ended up tied after 18 holes. Well, with the competitive juices flowing, they needed a way to break the tie. So, they headed up to the skydeck and found a dart board. The ensuing slaughter was not pretty. Bailey completely destroyed him in a rout. Of course, Cody got his payback in the ships game room. Seems years of hanging out with Zack in the hotel's game room finally paid off, and Cody returned the rout in a game of foosball.
Both decided that a record of 1-1-1 was good enough for them as they didn't want to let their competitiveness cause problems. So, instead, they teamed up in doubles ping pong and shuffleboard and took on all comers.
But they had to cut their fun for the evening short as they had somewhere else they had to be. So, after cleaning up and changing, they found themselves knocking on the door to the largest suite on the boat. When the door opened, London pulled them both inside.
"We have to hurry! I have plans for later, so lets get this done and over with. Cody, start getting everything set up!"
Reluctantly, he did with help from Bailey, but he felt like he was walking his own green mile. Once they had it set up, they turned to London. "Ready when you are..."
London grinned. "Almost..." She walked over and grabbed two garment bags. "You two need to change!"
Cody shook his head. "Do what you want with me, but leave Bailey out of this. I made the deal with you, not her..."
London was about to say something when Bailey put her hand on Cody's shoulder. "No, I'll do it. Remember, we said all of our adventures now, we'd do together. This is no different."
"You sure?"
Bailey smiled. "Positive..."
London rolled her eyes. "Good, now get changed. I'll start without you..."
Cody and Bailey went to separate dressing rooms, and London began.
"Welcome to Yay Me! Starring London Tipton! I'm London Tipton! This is a special episode coming to you live from the S.S. Tipton sailing through the Caribbean. Also, its my special spring fashion episode, and I have two volunteers you all might remember to model a few things for you..."
In his dressing room, Cody unzipped his bag and was absolutely shocked with what he found. "Is she serious?"
London continued on with her show. "Alright, you've all seen my new dress. Lets look at our two models. First up is my old producer, Cody. Cody, come out here!"
The door to his dressing room opened, and Cody stepped out. But instead of being dressed in something humiliating, he was wearing a tailor fitted tuxedo and looked quite dashing. He still wasn't sure what was going on and was waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"London, I don't understand..."
London cut him off though. "And our other model, Cody's girlfriend...Bailey..."
Bailey stepped out of her dressing room. And Cody's eyes nearly popped out of his head. She was wearing the most elegant while sexiest black dress he had ever seen. His voice almost left him.
"Wow..."
Bailey smiled back at him. "Ditto..."
London continued. "Cody is wearing the newest Armani tuxedo for spring 2012, and Bailey is wearing an one of a kind Arturo Vitali original. And the best thing about it? Its sparkly!"
To be Continued...
