Chapter 24

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...

Two Months Later

Cody had just returned to his room and dropped his backpack off on his desk. Once he did that, he just sat back on his bed and relaxed. These past couple of months had been action packed. Fortunately, his parents and everyone else had thought his idea was a good one and had agreed to it. He laid back and closed his eyes to just take it easy. A few minutes to unwind sounded real good about then. Unfortunately, it wasn't to last long as his cell phone began ringing. Pulling it out of his pocket, he answered it.

"Hello?"

"Cody..."

He smiled. "Hey Mom...How's the tour going?"

"Pretty well actually. We're in San Francisco tonight, so were going to head off to Fisherman's Wharf here in a little while to explore it and get some fresh seafood."

"Sounds like you all are having as much as we are..."

"We are having a lot of fun. Where are you all at right now exactly?"

"Well, we left Miami a few days ago and are heading south towards South America. Word is we'll be in Rio in about a week and a half."

She laughed. "That does sound like fun. Where in the world did you come up with the idea of Seven Seas High anyways? I would never have thought of that in a million years..."

He laughed too. "Easy. Before I left for Texas, London mentioned that's where her father was sending her so she couldn't skip school like before. I thought this would be a good compromise. We'd all have stability while getting a wonderful education while you and Dad had a chance to reconnect."

"Well, you were right. Your Dad and I have reconnected. Better than I ever could have dreamed or imagined..."

"Trying to tell me something, Mom?"

She smiled. "Maybe. There might be a ceremony when you are all home for Christmas where your Dad will require yours and Zack's services as best men..."

Cody couldn't help but smile. It may not have happened like they had planned, but it looked like it was going to work out after all. "Congratulations, Mom. Oh, and before you ask, you definitely have my blessing."

Carey laughed again. "I kind of figured I did..."

"Now, I do have to ask. Am I allowed to bring a date to this little shindig?"

"I kind of figured and hoped you would. How is Bailey doing anyways?"

Cody grinned again. "She's doing great. In fact, she's supposed to be coming down to my and Zack's cabin in a little bit so we can do our homework before heading out to dinner..."

"I'm glad to hear things are going well for you. Speaking of Zack, you are watching out for your brother, aren't you?"

"Yes, Mom. I'm even already cleaning up after him..."

She chuckled. "Kind of saw that coming...Just remember, even though your Dad and I aren't there, I want you both to listen to Mr. Moseby. I'm glad he's there to keep an eye on you..."

Cody paused. "Ummm..."

"Cody?"

He sighed. "Lets just say Zack's found a new favorite person to pull pranks on..."

Carey sighed. "I should have known that was coming too..."

"Yeah, I even heard Moseby call him a hooligan the other day..."

"I figured Maya would help calm him down a little bit..."

Cody laughed. "Who do you think his partner in crime is?"

Carey sighed again. "Great. Well, I'll let you get back to what you were doing. Make sure you call me at least every other day so I can keep in touch with you."

"I'll do better than that. On the days I don't, I'll send you an e-mail letting you know what's going on."

At that moment, Zack walked into their cabin as well. Cody looked up. "Oh hey, Mom. Zack just came in..."

Immediately, Zack began shaking his head. Cody sighed. "Nevermind, he headed right into the bathroom. From what I've learned the past couple of months, he might be in there a while..."

Carey laughed. "Alright. Well, tell him that I love you both and can't wait to see you both again..."

"Will do, Mom. Love you too. Bye." Cody hung up the phone and looked at Zack. "Mom says she loves us and can't wait to see us again..."

Zack nodded. "Good. No offense to Mom, and I love her to death, but when I talked to her yesterday, she kept me on the phone for almost an hour. I'm going to have to start screening her calls. Besides, I'm supposed to meet Maya on the lido deck in ten minutes to shoot some hoops. You want to join us?"

Cody shook his head. "No thanks. Bailey is coming by in a little while, and we're going to do our homework together."

Zack just looked at him. "Homework? But today was the first day of school...and we don't have any homework due yet except for that paper due next week!"

"We know, but we want to stay on top of things..."

Zack just shook his head and sighed. "I can't believe I didn't see how you two would hit it off..."

Cody laughed. "Well, I'm very glad we did. What about you though? You okay with this place not having a basketball team to play for?"

"Of course I am..." He grinned. "Let me think...play against a bunch of sweaty guys or one on one against a hot, cool girl? Tough call..."

Cody shook his head. "And I should have saw that one coming..."

"Well, now you know...I'm going to change and get out of here. Have you seen Woodchuck and Addison?"

Cody paused. "Well, they said they were going to go get some ice cream after class. I figured I'd give them a wide berth after hearing that..."

Zack shuddered. "Good call. Oh well, I'm going to change and get out of here."

"By the way, when we get home for Christmas, we have a wedding to go to..."

Zack stopped what he was doing and turned to Cody. "Does that mean what I think it means?"

Cody grinned. "Uh huh. We've been tagged to be Dad's best men."

Zack grinned back. "Excellent! Looks like all of our scheming paid off..."

"I guess so..."

"Oh well, I need to be going before I'm late."

Ten minutes later, Zack was on the lido deck waiting for Maya to arrive. When she finally did, she snuck up behind and tole the ball away from Zack.

"You're getting soft, Martin. I expected a lot more from you..."

Zack turned around and grinned. "Well, I thought I'd go easy on you to start with. Didn't want to destroy your confidence from the start..."

Maya grinned back at him. "Uh huh. Is that why I beat you yesterday?"

"All part of my master plan..."

"Well, no offense, but I think I like your brother's master plan better. This ship is amazing!"

"I know. Plus, we have an easy target to pull pranks on in Moseby. Is it just me, or is it hilarious to see him get mad."

She laughed. "It is, but when he wears those knee socks, he's just asking for it..."

He laughed too. "Tell me about it." He paused. "Plus, I have the best of all worlds here. Instead of being cross country from you, I'm only a few floors down. And, I have Addison here too. And somehow, Woodchuck's grown on me, and I can't imagine not having him around either. On top of that, for the first time ever, I'm living and getting to really know my brother. This place really is perfect."

"I agree. I'm getting to know everyone too. Living with Addison has been...interesting, but fun. And everyone is great." She teased him. "And even though you don't want to hear it, Cody and Bailey are adorable together..."

Zack wrapped his arms around her. "I learning to get used to them, but lets forget about them and focus on something a whole lot more interesting...us."

"Us, huh? I don't know...I mean, I am still getting to know who you are..."

Zack looked at her incredulously. "You've known the real me for over two months now. Even when I had to go back to Seattle, we talked every day either on the phone or webcam. We even went out a few times when I came back to Seattle to help Cody and Mom get ready to move out to Seattle...You even took me to my first Red Sox game at Fenway!"

Maya began laughing. "I was just teasing you, Zack."

He just sighed. "Oh..."

"It'll be okay. I think I have a very good idea who the real you is, and I'm still here. Now, we should be getting back to playing some basketball..."

"Alright, but I'm going to get you back for teasing me. No more Mr. Nice Guy!"

"Bring it!"

After a very competitive game of one on one, they stopped to catch their breaths. Zack just looked over at Maya.

"Best two out of three!"

She laughed. "Nah. I think I'm good for now. Besides, I thought you said you weren't going to go easy on me anymore?"

Zack hung his head. "Okay...you got me. Happy now?"

Maya smiled and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Yeah. I am happy. Very happy."

He smiled back. "Me too."

She looked over. "Hey...isn't that Mr. Moseby hanging out with Miss Tutweiler?"

Zack looked over to where she was looking. "Yeah...it is. Isn't that interesting...Its almost as if they are on a date."

Maya grinned. "Maybe we should go find out what's going on?"

"I have a better idea...You up to pull a prank on them both?"

"Am I? What do you have in mind?"

Zack grinned. "I actually have to give Cody credit for this one. You see...their is this chemical compound he was telling me about..."

Back at Cody's cabin, he was getting everything ready for when Bailey showed up to do their homework. And a few minutes later, there was a knock at his door. He opened it to find a smiling Bailey, and he smiled back as he welcomed her inside.

"Come on in..."

"Thanks...I have to say. Your cabin is a lot tidier than I thought it would be. I figured with you and Zack sharing a cabin, it would be half clean and half a disaster area..."

Cody laughed. "Give it time. As long as his mess doesn't encroach on my half of the cabin, I think I can deal with it. But, I have told him that the bathroom must be kept clean all time. I don't want anything growing in there. Zack seemed to agree as long as I didn't object to his stash of comic books under the sink."

Bailey laughed too. "I supposed that's a good compromise. So, how is it sharing a room with your brother for the first time ever?"

"Its definitely something I'm adapting too." He smiled. "But if the price I have to pay for having you a few floors up instead of across the country is dealing with his mess, consider it worth every penny..."

She smiled back. "And for having you a few floors down, I don't mind putting up with London."

"How is it sharing a cabin with her?"

Bailey sighed. "Other than having to put a lock on my closet so she doesn't try to take it over?"

Cody rubbed her back. "I should have warned you about that. Back at the hotel, her closet was the size of a small country. I should have figured she'd try to look for more closet space."

"Its okay. Though, I could do without the constant insults and putdowns about my appearance and the way I dress..."

"Hey, I've dealt with those for three years now. London can be...a bit much to take in, but she can be a really good friend too. You just have to give it back to her as good as she gives it to you. I can even help you out there if you want. For example, she is very self conscious about her ears..." He grinned. "Besides, if she does say something about your appearance and clothes, just remember that I love the way you dress, and I think you are the most beautiful girl in the world."

She smiled again. "Really?"

He smiled back. "Oh yeah. Not even close."

She beamed at him. "Thank you. Not so bad yourself."

"So, does that mean you'd be willing to be seen with me as my date for my parents' wedding over Christmas Break?"

Bailey's eyes went wide. "Are you serious?"

Cody nodded and smiled. "Yeah. I guess all of our scheming and planning worked out."

Bailey engulfed him in a tight hug. "That's amazing news!"

"So, does that mean I have a date then?"

She pulled back and smiled. "You know you do."

He smiled back. "Excellent." He paused. "Are you sure you don't mind being away from your family here on the boat?"

She took his hand in hers. "Sure, I'll miss them. But, I'm here with you, and I getting the educational opportunity of a lifetime. But my parents understand why I wanted to come here." She grinned again. "Plus, it didn't hurt that you practically begged them and said your Dad was willing to pay for it. I mean...we'll get to study oceanography on the ocean...study ancient Greece from the Acropolis...study ancient Egypt from Giza. There was no way I could turn this down!"

"Good. I can't wait for all of those things either. And they will be even better because I get to do them with you..."

"Speaking of things we should do, we should get started on our homework. We don't want to fall behind. Besides, when we get to Rio, I want to have everything done so I don't have to worry about homework while I'm there..."

Cody smiled. "You just read my mind..."

Bailey smiled back. "Good. Now, all we have to do now is our assignment for English."

Both pulled out their assignment sheets and read over them. Immediately, both looked up at the other and began laughing.

"Is she serious?"

"I think so..."

Bailey shook her head. "Miss Tutweiler seriously wants us to write an essay on how we spent our summer vacations?"

Cody nodded. "I guess so..." He paused and began laughing again. "Why do I get the feeling she'll never believe us?"

The End