Chapter 18

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...

Seattle, Washington

Fortunately, Zack was very familiar with Sea-Tac Airport, so he could help navigate Woody and his severely hungover mother through it without any problems. And that was a good thing as Carey had passed out again as soon as they had gotten on the plane and slept the whole way to Seattle. And even more fortunate, Moseby had managed to have the the Seattle Tipton's airport shuttle there waiting on them when they arrived. So once everyone loaded into the van, they all sat back and relaxed on the trip to the hotel. By the time they got there, Carey was sobered up enough to check in. And while she did that, Zack slipped away to make a phone.

"Hey Broseph...its me. We're here. What's the plan now?"

Cody paused. "Okay, Dad and everyone else is supposed to be there by six o'clock this evening. But I already told Dad that I would meet him there, so I can be there early. Lets see. Its almost noon now...I'll be there by two o'clock."

"How did you explain that you weren't coming with him?"

Cody paused again. "I'll explain that to you later."

"Alright, well...we had sort of a problem. I think Mom got so freaked out about seeing Dad again, she started drinking a little early..."

"Really? I've never seen Mom have more than one before, and she only has one every so often. She must really be nervous..."

"I guess so. I had to bring Woody with me to help out. He was the only person I could count on."

"Okay, well, I'll be there in a couple of hours. In the meantime, get Mom coffee...lots and lots of coffee."

Soon after, everyone headed up to their suite in the hotel, and all of them were surprised to see that it looked exactly like the one they had in Boston. And immediately, Carey went to lie down. While she did that, Zack and Woody sunk down into the couch to relax themselves. If they were honest, a nap sounded real good to them as well. Well, it did until Zack's phone began ringing again. He groaned figuring it was Cody calling him back to tell him something, but when he saw it was Maya, he immediately answered it.

"Maya!"

"Hey Cody...I just wanted to call you back to see if everything was okay. When you hung up yesterday, it seemed like something was really bothering you..."

Zack sighed. "Yeah. Something was bothering me. An...ummm...family emergency came up here too. In fact, my Mom and I had to fly out to Seattle this morning to take care of it..."

"You're in Seattle too?"

Zack frowned. "Wait a minute! You're here too?"

"Yeah. This is where my grandmother lives. Where are you?"

"We just checked into the Seattle Tipton not more than fifteen minutes ago." He paused. This was going to be his chance to finally talk to her in person. "Maya...is there anyway you can come down here? There's something I really need to tell you as soon as possible, and I'd prefer to do it in person..."

"Cody...you're scaring me again. But I guess I can be there in a couple of hours if its that important..."

"Trust me. It is. We're in Suite 2302. Just come on up when you get here."

"Okay, Cody...I'll see you soon then."

Zack hung up his phone and smiled. Maybe things were going to work out for him after all.

On the Other Side of Town

Cody had woken up early, cleaned up and dressed. He knew today was the day, and he hoped and prayed everything would work out the way they wanted it to. Fixing himself a bowl of cereal, he sat down at the kitchen table to go over the plan once more in his mind. He was so occupied thinking that he didn't notice his Dad slip into the kitchen.

"You nervous about today?"

Cody looked up and paused. And truthfully, he answered. "Yeah, I am."

Kurt sat down next to him. "Meeting a girl's parents can be a real nerve wracking experience. No matter how nice of a guy you are, you'll never be good enough for her Dad." He laughed. "But, if some guy wanted to take out Addison, I'm sure Billy and I would probably think the same thing..."

Cody laughed too. "So would I."

"I do have to ask. You and Bailey? I never would have saw that coming. You two are just polar opposites. Now her and..." He paused. "You know...nevermind."

"What?"

"I just had a crazy thought. Must be a sign of me getting older, huh?"

Cody shrugged. "Maybe...Now its my turn to ask. No offense, but aren't you and Meredith getting married awfully quickly? What's the rush?"

Kurt sighed. "Its like I told you. We all could benefit by having a woman around the house. You said so yourself..."

"Yeah, I did. But that's no reason to marry someone. I mean..." He smiled. "I may only be fifteen, but even I know that I won't get married until I truly love someone. You know...someone I can't imagine my life without..."

Kurt just shook his head. "Its not always that easy, Zack..."

"Of course it is. You always told me not to settle for second best. Why would I do that in something that is so important?"

"Because sometimes, you can't always have what you want..."

Cody smiled. "Says who?"

Kurt just looked at him funny. "Just trust me on this one, Son..."

Cody shrugged again. "I don't know, Dad. Maybe its all that world history still on my brain, but things that don't start off with the right foundation often fail."

"Like what?"

"Look at the British colonies. The crown didn't do things the right way, and they soon had a revolution on their hands. And in the end, they lost their colonies and a whole lot of money." He paused. "And Dad, if you're set on doing this, I have two words for you – prenuptial agreement."

Kurt just laughed. "Where in the world did you learn about things like that?"

Cody paused. "TV..."

"I wouldn't worry about it, Zack. I don't think Meredith is like that. She has her own money."

"Then she shouldn't have a problem signing one then. I'm serious, Dad. You're a very successful musician. I'm sure I'm not telling you anything your agent probably already has."

Kurt paused. "You really think so?"

"I'd do it, Dad. If Meredith objects, that could really tell you something about her..."

He nodded. "I'll think about it..."

Cody nodded. "Alright..." At that minute, Cody's cell phone rang. He saw it was Zack calling. "Excuse me a second, Dad. Private phone call here..."

Five minutes later, Cody came back into the kitchen. "Sorry, Dad. That was Bailey. I have to get going. See you downtown later."

Kurt nodded. "See you then. Good luck."

Cody smiled. "You too, Dad."

The Seattle Tipton

Carey finally woke up form her nap, but she wasn't feeling much better at all. She finally came out of the bedroom in the suite and found Zack and Woody sitting on the couch in the main part of the suite.

"Did I dream we came to Seattle or are we actually here?"

Zack laughed. "We're here, Mom."

She nodded. "Have you spoken to Cody or your father yet?"

"Yeah, Cody said Dad would be here about six o'clock tonight. Cody said he would try to be here a little earlier..."

Carey paused and felt her stomach rumbling again. "I think I'm going to throw up..." She ran back into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

Woody turned to Zack. "When are you going to tell her the truth? You know...that your Dad has no idea about the switch, that he has no idea that we're all here or the fact that he's getting married?"

Zack sighed. "I don't know. I was kind of waiting for Cody to get her and let him handle that part. I've been more focused on what I'm going to tell Maya."

"What are you going to tell her?"

He shook his head. "I'm not sure yet..."

About that time, Carey came back out of the bathroom. "I don't feel so good..."

Woody stood up. "Coffee. I'll head down to the front desk and order some."

Zack nodded. "Good idea. Get a whole pot of it..."

Woody headed out, and Zack told his Mom to go take a hot shower. He was hoping that it would make her feel better. Carey nodded and headed back into the bathroom. Zack just began pacing back and forth feeling his own stomach begin to churn as well. At that moment, his cell phone rang and he answered it.

"Hello?"

"Cody? Its me, Maya. I'm in a cab on my way to the hotel. I should be there in fifteen minutes."

Zack nodded. "Good. Tell you what. I'll actually head down to the lobby to meet you instead. There is something I really need to tell you. Its all going to come out anyways today, but I want you to know before it does."

"Okay, but I'm really getting concerned here..."

"Don't worry about it too much. I promise you. Its not what you're thinking at all..."

Zack hung up the phone. He went over to knock on the door to the bathroom and told his Mom he was going to head down to the lobby himself for a minute. She told him to go and that she would be a while. He sighed as he left the suite.

"I sure hope this works..."

Back Across Town

Cody arrived at Bailey's house to pick her up again before they headed down to the hotel. And when he knocked on the door this time, Eunice welcomed him inside.

"I understand today is the day when everything's going to happen, huh?"

Cody nodded. "Yeah. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried. But that's where Bailey has been my rock. She's been there to talk me down when I needed it or give me a good idea."

Eunice smiled. "Well, I wish you luck today."

Bailey came down the stairs, but she was being followed by Addison. This took Cody by surprise.

"Addison?"

Addison just grinned at him. "You think I was going to miss today? I can't wait to see your Mom again either. Besides, I already told you I wanted to be there when Zack finds out about you and Bailey..."

Cody just laughed. "Thanks...I think."

The three of them headed out and caught a bus downtown to the Tipton Hotel. Walking in to the lobby, Cody immediately began laughing.

Bailey turned to him. "What's so funny?"

"I'm guessing every single Tipton hotel across the country looks exactly the same. For a second there, I thought I was walking into the Boston one. Its looks exactly like this...except for there is no Mr. Moseby behind the front desk."

Bailey and Addison just shook their heads, but it wasn't long until Cody saw something else that looked eerily familiar to him – Woody!

"Woodchuck!"

Woody turned and saw either Zack or Cody standing with two girls. He walked over to them and paused.

"Are you Zack or Cody?"

"I'm Cody."

He leaned in and whispered. "Real Cody or Zack saying he's Cody?"

Cody laughed. "I'm real Cody. Good to see you again, Woody. Woody, this is Bailey and Addison. I believe you remember Addison from our cooking lesson."

Woody's eyes went wide. "Whoa...it is you! You're even prettier in person than you are on the computer..."

Addison blushed and smiled. "You really think so?"

He nodded and smiled. "I know so."

Cody paused and looked at Bailey. She just shrugged. So, Cody continued. "What are you doing down here, Woody?"

Woody tore his eyes away from Addison. "Oh...Your Mom's now hung over, so I came down to get her coffee."

Cody sighed. "You should probably get going. We only have a few hours for her to get back to normal. We're going to head up and see her now."

Addison spoke up. "Ummm...why don't I give Woody a hand?"

Woody grinned. "I'd like that. Come on. Lets go!"

Before Cody could say anything, both were gone in a flash. Bailey just shook her head and laughed.

"Okay...this whole thing keeps getting weirder and weirder...and I'm loving every second of it!"

Cody laughed too. "Tell me about it. What else could happen now?" He paused. "You ready to meet my Mom?"

"Yeah. I'm ready. I can't wait to meet the person who is responsible for you being the sweet, wonderful guy that you are..."

Cody smiled. "Well, I've met your Mom, so I know where you get yours from..."

Bailey smiled back. "You ain't seen nothing yet..." She grabbed his hands in hers, leaned in and kissed him again which Cody happily returned.

When they pulled back, Cody was still smiling. "I will never get tired of doing that..."

"Cody! What are you doing?"

Both Cody and Bailey turned and saw a brunette girl about their own age glaring at him. And for some reason, the girl looked vaguely familiar to him.

"Huh?"

"Cody! What are you doing kissing and holding hands with Bailey!"

Cody and Bailey turned in another direction and saw Zack looking at them with a look of horror on his face. Of course, Zack happened to see Maya on the other side of them.

"Maya!"

But Maya could only look back and forth between the both of them. "Th...th...there's two of you!" And with that, she fainted in the middle of the lobby.

To be Continued...