(A/N: I changed the title for this chapter, because I thought it made more sense.)
Chapter 7: Thoughts, Confessions, and Matchmakers
Part 1- Looking BackIt was storming outside, and everyone was having trouble getting to sleep. Phil was sitting on his bed, looking for pictures on his cell phone he could delete. He had so many on there, that the previous day, it wouldn't let him take any more. So he decided that this would be an opportunity to get rid of some age-old ones, and just random ones of walls and floors that he guessed Pim had taken. Then, he stumbled upon another picture taken a while ago. It was when he and Keely had gone to the Spring Formal together at the end of tenth grade. Her boyfriend, Robert, broke up with her two days before the dance. To help Keely pull out of her post-breakup depression, Phil suggested that they go together. She felt a lot better knowing that she had a best friend who cared so much. No matter what insensitive jerk she went out with, he'd always be there for her in the end. Truthfully, Phil had thought that he liked her as more than a friend, ever since the Tanner incident. He just could never completely decipher his true feelings because he knew he could never bring himself to admit them, because he was never sure if she felt the same way, and he didn't want to ruin the friendship. He actually had put his confusion to the back of his mind lately, thinking about spring break and upcoming final exams, but now, looking back and remembering this one particular memory, along with many others, it came to his mind again. 'Maybe I really do like her as more than a friend.' He thought to himself. 'But I'm not about to make a fool of myself and tell her. Because, what if we start dating, I screw up on something, and Keely never talks to me again? I wouldn't want that to happen. Maybe we are better off as friends.' He'd been in a few relationships since the body switch with Curtis the Caveman, most of which he screwed up on in one form or another. Thinking about possibly screwing up and losing a best friend because of it made Phil to always believe in the end that they were really better off as friends, pushing his confusion to the back of his mind. He took off some more pictures from his cell, and by then the storm was over. He turned off his cell, and went back to bed.
Keely was also having some thoughts. It all started when she decided to journal about her vacation so far just for the heck of it. After she wrote a little, she found herself looking back at some of the past things she'd written. She'd logged every guy she's dated since Tanner, and every school dance she's ever been to. But she also realized another thing. In every one of her entries since about the middle of her freshman year, which was when Phil and his family landed in the past, his name would be somewhere in the writing. 'Duh', she thought to herself. 'Maybe it's because whatever insensitive jerk I date, he's the one person who's always there for me in the end.' She looked on and read more of her past entries. In the entry after Phil's date with Alice and the Curtis body switch, she'd written that she liked Phil as more than a friend. She'd also thought about it from time to time over the past years. 'Well, it's not rocket science, Teslow,' she thought to herself while reading. 'It's not MAYBE you like him. You DEFINITELY do. Look at every single relationship he's been in; you've been jealous in one way or another. And if Phil wasn't Curtis that one night, he would have known.' She decided that she might ask Chelsea tomorrow and ask her what she thinks. 'Chelsea's the one person I know who's better than Tia in the boyfriend department. She knows guys better than her own parents,' Keely thought.She doubted trusting this with a new friend at first, but she'd gotten to know her pretty well over the past week, and she seemed like someone who could keep a secret. 'I'll probably never get the guts to tell him anyway. We'll probably only be friends forever.' she thought and then went to sleep.
Part 2- Keely's Confession"Why is it so dark in here"? Phil wondered when he got up at seven the next morning. He knew that Pim was always up by six, and normally every light in the room would be on. "That storm last night cut the power," Pim said, hearing him. A few seconds later, as if on cue, the lights came back on. "Now I can cook these Pop Tarts," Pim said. Keely got up a few minutes later. "Oh, you guys are up already. Mornin'." "Mornin'," said Phil. "Pop tart"? "Sure, why not," she replied. "So, did you guys hear the storm last night"? she asked, taking a pop tart. "Yeah, actually the power just came back." Just then Barb came over and knocked on the door. "Everybody up"? asked Barb. "Yup, we're all up," Keely replied. "Good," said Barb. "Don't forget to give your laundry to the maid when she comes. We're going to hang out here this morning, then go to the mall this afternoon." "Great," said Keely. "We'll be around." "Okay, see you guys in a little while," Barb said and went back to her room. After they finished eating their pop tarts, Keely said, "I'm going to go over to Mike and Chelsea's room for a minute. I um- forgot something there last night. I'll be back in a few." "Okay, see ya," said Phil. Pim decided to use the New Ager to rack in another hundred dollars as a room service worker. She grabbed the New Ager when Phil wasn't looking, and said, "Well, adios, I'm going to um- walk around." She then left. Phil rolled his eyes thinking, 'She's definitely been up to something lately.'
Keely knocked on Mike and Chelsea's door. "Keely, hey," Chelsea said when she answered it. "What's up"? "Just wandering around, thought I'd stop by," she replied. "Cool, come on in," Chelsea said. After a moment of silence, Keely spoke up, "Hey, can I ask you something"? "Sure," Chelsea replied. Keely asked, "How do you find out if the guy you like likes you without actually telling them you like them"? "No offense," Chelsea replied. "But I need to give you a reality check. These spring break relationship things never work out." "No, it's not someone I met at the hotel," Keely said. "I think that I might like Phil. Wait, I don't think it, I know it." "Wow, you do. I mean, he's your best friend and all…" Chelsea said and trailed off. "I know, I'm pathetic," Keely replied. Chelsea said, "No, it's not pathetic. Just caught me by surprise. So, when did you first realize it"? "Well, it was the middle of my freshmen year. It was when he almost had to move to Tucson, Keely said. "Then I realized it for a fact when he went on this date to a fancy party at the end of my freshmen year." "Your freshmen year"? Chelsea asked. "That was two years ago. Two years, and you haven't done anything." "You know, you're just like my friend, Tia," Keely said. "I just can't go up to someone and ask them out. Especially someone who's my best friend." "Sure you can," said Chelsea. "You just need confidence." "Maybe I should just forget the whole thing. I mean, I don't want to ruin our friendship and make Phil never talk to me again. Anyway, I'll see you later. I've got to go give my laundry to the maid." With that, Keely left. Chelsea was thinking, 'Maybe I can do something about it for her. I love this matchmaking stuff. I just need a second opinion.'
Keely went back to her room to find a note from Phil, saying to meet him in the rec room when she came back. She set out her laundry for the maid, and went downstairs. She found him at a pool table attempting to learn how to play. "Having much luck with pool"? Keely asked him, walking over. "No," he replied. "I couldn't shoot this thing if my life depended on it. I've seen Seth do it a million times, but it just isn't clicking with me. Why don't you give it a try"? "Okay," she said and took the cue stick. "I suck at this, too," she said after accidentally poking a person behind her with the cue stick. Phil made the next shot, and the cue ball went flying in the other direction, through the air and eventually landing in someone's cup of coffee. "Sorry"! Phil yelled, and he retrieved the ball. "At least I keep the cue ball ON the table," Keely joked. "Hey," Phil said jokingly. "At least I didn't almost poke someone's eye out." They laughed. "Since we both stink at pool, do you want to go play that racing game"? Keely asked. "Sure, let's go," Phil replied.
Part 3: MatchmakersMeanwhile, Chelsea ran off to find Mike down at the candy counter. "Hey, I've got a job for us," Chelsea said to him. "What, now"? he asked. "We need to get Phil and Keely together," she replied. "Keely likes him, and it seems that he may like her, too." "Not another one of your crazy matchmaking schemes," he said, rolling his eyes. She replied, "It's not crazy. You know how much I love this kind of stuff." "Fine," he said. "What do I do"? "Talk to Phil," she said. "Get him to say whether or not he likes Keely. Act like you know something. Then meet me back up in the room." "Okay, I'll do it," he said, seeming more excited about the plan. With that, he walked off. He arrived at Phil's room and knocked on the door. "Hey, come on in," Phil greeted him. "Packing up"? Mike asked him, seeing clothes and a large suitcase on his bed. "Yeah, we're leaving in two days, Phil replied. "We go back to school Monday." "Yeah, so do we," Mike replied. "Hey, I was wondering something," he said after a moment of silence. "What's that"? Phil asked, curiously. "I've been hanging out with you guys for almost two weeks," he said. "And it seems to me that you might like Keely as more than a friend." "Am I that obvious"? Phil asked, almost instantly. "Oh, yeah," Mike said. 'Not really,' he thought to himself. 'But I am supposed to act like I know something.' "Actually, I do," Phil replied. "But nothing's ever going to happen, so I'll just forget about it. We're probably only going to be friends forever." "But, have you been thinking about it for a while"? Mike asked. "Actually, yeah," Phil replied. "Ever since she went out with this guy in our drama class in ninth grade." "So, jealousy first told you"? Mike questioned. "Yeah, kind of like that," Phil replied. They heard something beep. "That's my watch," said Mike. "Mom wants me back in the room now. See ya later." "See ya," Phil said, and Mike left.
"So, what happened"? Chelsea asked anxiously when Mike returned. "Well, he says he likes her, but he seems too chicken to tell her." She laughed. "Well, I've got part 2 of the plan all ready," said Chelsea. "I say we leave these notes under their pillows, and let it go from there." "You mean let them talk to each other themselves"? Mike asked. "Yup, we've done our part. Now it's time to let them do theirs," Chelsea said.
When the Diffys and Keely got back from the mall later on, Mike and Chelsea came over to watch a movie on pay-per-view. Pim counted her money that she made earlier. She'd made eighty-one dollars that day, and got more laughs out of even more clueless primates. They all eventually retired for the night. When Phil and Keely woke up in the morning, they each had a note on their bed that they must have missed the previous night. They were both surprised as ever when they read what they said…
Another Cliffhanger! Stay tuned in for the next chapter. Cookies for reviewers!
Next Chapter: Together and Goodbye: It doesn't take a genius to figure out what's going to happen next chapter ;-). Also, everyone gets ready to leave Florida to return home after a long vacation.
(A/N: I had the hardest time with this chapter, but I hope it's good. I wasn't sure how to make them admit their feelings, seeing as this is the first chapter that foreshadows a relationship, and nothing was mentioned about them liking each other in previous chapters. That was because this wasn't my original plan for the story, but after getting feedback from reviewers, I decided to change the course of it. If I don't post the next chapter tomorrow, it might be a few days, because I'm going back to school Monday and will have homework again unfortunately. I've only got one more full-length chapter left to do, and the epilogue. I hope to finish this sometime this week.)
