"So, you're meeting with London tonight to work on the history report? It's kind of strange that she actually came to you for help."
Zack and Cody were on the way back to their cabins as the sun set over the sea, casting a golden glow over it. They entered the hallway near their cabin doors. Zack said, "She asked me because you nor Bailey agreed to help her."
"That is because she would make us do all the work. You two have about the same level of smarts, so I think the pairing perfect."
"That's what she said, but in only so many words." He paused and gave his brother a look. "Hey, we are not on the same level of smarts."
"In academics, you're on the same level."
Zack pointed to his chest. "Hey, I can be pretty smart when it's the real world, like numbers with dollar signs in front of them for example."
Cody nodded. "I admit that you're right, but that's in math. This is history. You pronounce Louis XIV 'Louice Siv'."
They stopped at their cabin doors which were right across the hall from each other. "Hey, that may be true, but I know my history. Remember how we tutored Kirby that time? I have a way of remembering things." He pointed to his noggin.
"And then you forget them the moment the test is over."
"Hey, Zack!"
Both guys jumped from the loud outburst as London came scampering into the hallway in her tall heels. She linked arms with Zack, and he couldn't help but notice that perfume again. "C'mon study buddy! Let's get started. I have to finish this project so I can go shopping in England when we arrive there."
"But we're arriving in England in two weeks," Cody countered.
"Exactly. C'mon!"
She pulled Zack away, and Zack heard Cody shout "Good luck!" and then laugh, amused by the whole situation. Before Zack knew it, he sat next to London in her and Bailey's room on the other side of the ship, and their history book was open in front of them on London's desk. It was on her side of the room but was used as a second vanity desk. Perfumes and makeup adorned the table, and there was just enough space to put the textbook and notebook out.
"Now, let's get this done quick," London said, and Zack smelled that oh-so-nice perfume again. He attempted to ignore it, but it wasn't working. Why couldn't he ignore it? He was sure she had worn them before.
"Okay, how about I read, and you write?" he suggested.
"Okay!"
Zack started reading from the text book and he noticed that London wasn't writing a thing down in the notebook. She looked over to him. "How do you spell 'history'?"
"I didn't even say 'history.'"
"I know. This report needs a title, duh. I was going to write it at the top of the paper."
Zack thought a moment. He knew London could read better than she could write, even if she read slowly. He guessed she had a point in saying that she wanted to get this done in two weeks—it would take her a whole day just to write a paragraph to this two-page report, a report that was due in a week, but according to her, will take two weeks to write. Same ol' London.
"Okay, how about I write, and you read?" he asked.
"Okay," she chimed, and he pushed the textbook over to her as she handed him the notebook. She started reading, slowly as he predicted, and he wrote down what she read into his own words. This would take a while. He wanted to hit the buffet before the spicy shrimp ran out. Actually, before Woody gets there. All the food would be gone then.
A few minutes passed as they worked, and then Zack glanced over as London read. He stopped writing and stared at her for a moment. Her skin was super smooth, and her wavy hair shined in the light of the room. Her mouth was pretty attractive as well...
She turned her head to him and he immediately looked away, his heart pounding. What the heck was he doing, checking out London like that? He had never done that before! Something was seriously wrong with him.
"Zack, why aren't you writing?" London asked.
"Uh..." he stammered, then smirked and tapped a pencil to his head. "Just thinking about how to put all that into my own words."
"But what you're writing is your own words since you're writing them."
There she went with her dim-wittedness again. "No, I mean, I'm taking what you read and I'm saying it in a different way just so I'm not writing word-for-word from the textbook."
She thought about that a moment, and he wondered if that was too complicated for her again. "Nevermind," he said. "Just trust me."
"Okay. I trust you, partner."
She got back to her reading, and he couldn't help but smile at the fact that she trusted him. She knew that she wasn't that smart, since she mentioned it before, and he knew that he was smarter than her. Well, a rock was smarter than her, honestly, but still. She saw that he could actually be some help to her since she knew he was smarter than her.
An hour passed as Zack wrote slowly, and as London read slowly. Honestly, he was losing patience, and he knew that the shrimp was most likely gone from the buffet. Oh, well. At least they were... he glanced at the paper... a paragraph in. Geeze...
London yawned. Why did he find that cute? "I'm so tired!" she exclaimed.
"You only read two paragraphs."
"Yeah, and that was tiring, pronouncing all those words."
He chuckled at that and closed the textbook for her and closed the notebook. He really wanted to get out of there, one, since he was hungry; and two, he wanted to get away from London so he wouldn't react to her like he started doing today. "Okay. Let's call it a night. We'll work on this tomorrow."
"Okay!" she chimed and stood up. "Now leave so I can get ready for bed."
Zack couldn't help but let heat travel up his neck at the thought of London taking off her clothes to change into some scandalous French nightie or something. He couldn't control his thoughts, could he?
"Hey, why's your face red?"
"What?" he asked, snapping out the fantasy as he stared at her. "Oh, um... nothing. Just tired. I'm gonna go now. Goodnight."
He abruptly left the room and cantered to his own. He about opened his door when someone said, "Hey, Zack!" behind him.
"AH!" he let out in surprise and turned around to find his brother there, giving him and odd look.
"A bit jumpy? What's going on? And why does your face look like a cherry?"
"No reason," he said nonchalantly.
"You met another girl," Cody surmised. "That's not surprising."
Zack stared at his brother for a moment, then pulled him into his room and shut the door. He started pacing around the room, his mind whirling with thoughts. He was surprised that he didn't get dizzy and pass out from them whizzing through his head.
"You alright, Zack?" Cody asked, watching him.
Zack stopped near the side of his bed and met his brother's hazel eyes. "Cody, I think I'm going crazy."
Cody chuckled. "You went gone crazy a long time ago. Pretty much when you were born."
He stepped up to him, his brows creased. "I'm serious. I really am going crazy here."
He went and sat on his bed and stared at his clothes-and-food-covered floor, the smell of which was prevalent in the air. Cody came and stood near the bed, nodding. "Yeah, I can see how you can be going crazy. Working on a history project with London... I mean, she thinks that Columbus was an old bus that had a column in the center of it."
He snickered again and Zack remained silent. Cody stared at him for a moment, trying to read him. Zack felt his face fill with heat even more, and his heart banged like a drum inside of him.
"Okay, what's really going on here?" Cody asked. "What..."
Zack cut him off. "I think London's hot."
Cody stared at Zack, his mouth open. "You what?"
He met Cody's eyes. "I don't know what happened. I've always looked at her and that was that, but today, when she came up to ask me to help her with her project... there was more. I thought she was hot."
"Well... she is, but we both think of her as a sister. We wouldn't go farther than that." He paused, eyeing Zack's expression. He gasped. "Oh my gosh, you think of her as more than a sister!"
"It's weird, I know, okay? I just can't stop staring at her now." He stood and took Cody's shoulders and said frantically, shaking his shoulders, "I don't want to have the hots for London! I can't! She doesn't even know how to spell her own name!"
"You don't know how to spell her name, either."
Zack paused. "Good point. But I can't have feelings for her—it's weird! And gross!"
"Okay, okay, calm down." He put Zack's arms down. "Now look, we both know that we can't help who we fall for."
"But I always thought of her as stylish dumb rock, who is also my friend since The Tipton. I can't think of her in any other way. I shouldn't think of her in any other way."
Cody folded his arms, an amused smirk on his face. "It's not that big of a deal, you know. You think a lot of girls are hot."
"Yeah, but not many of them make my heart want to pound out of my chest!"
Cody's eyes widened. "London made your heart want to pound out of your chest? Wow, this is more serious than I thought."
Zack groaned and collapsed onto his comforter. "This can't be happening..."
"Good luck with this one, pal."
"You're not helping. Why do I tell you anything, anyway?"
Cody sat on the side of Zack's bed. "Look, Zack, like I said, it's not that big of a deal. Maybe this is just a one-day thing. Tomorrow you'll go back to thinking that London is a stylish dumb rock."
Zack nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Maybe that pizza I ate for lunch was bad and it's making me crazy."
"Exactly. Tomorrow, you'll be fine."
Zack really hoped he would be. He sat up. "Let's hit the buffet. I'm starving."
"Fine by me."
The boys left the room, Zack's mind on that shrimp. Maybe the spiciness of it would help him forget his new-found attraction for the daughter of the owner of the ship.