Imagines and One-Shots (Book Two)

Almost Ordinary (Cody Carson) - Part 2

The next day

The knock at the door made you groan loudly, causing Sam to kick you under your dining room table. You glared at her, to which she only reminded you to be nice, as her mom got up from the couch in the living room to answer the door.

"Hi!" you could hear her smile, "You must be Cody! Come in! The girls are in the other room!" You listened to their footsteps get closer and closer until her mom appeared in the doorway. "Hey, girls," she smiled, ushering Cody in, "Don't forget to take breaks, okay? We can order some pizza later if you want. I'll try not to bother you too much."

"Thank you," you and Sam said in unison, not looking up from your books. Cody sat down at the table across from you, sitting quietly for a few moments before speaking.

"So..." he said slowly, "What country are we researching?"

You remained silent, flipping a page in the maps section of your textbook. Sam rolled her eyes, looking at him since it was obvious you were going to speak to him as little as humanly possible.

"We haven't decided yet," she informed him, "We were thinking about Chile but that might just be because Y/N is hungry." You heard Cody laugh softly, making you mentally reprimanded your heart for skipping a beat at the sound of it.

"I'm fine with that," he said, "I haven't been there yet though, so I don't know how much help I'll be."

"That's why you look it up in your textbook, genius," you scoffed lightly, ignoring when you felt him look at you.

Sam kicked you underneath the table again, making you glare at her. She didn't say anything – she just raised her eyebrows – causing you to grumble under your breath and look back down at your book.

The afternoon continued on like that – Sam and Cody making mindless small talk in the midst of your research, which rubbed you the wrong way for whatever reason. Maybe it was jealousy that he was a royal and he went to all these different places or maybe it was anger that he seemed to actually make a difference in the world while you were just trying to get by without getting picked on every day.

Though, it wasn't until just before dinner that the rolled eyes and not-so-subtle grumbles made Cody speak up.

Sam had just gone into the living room – despite your silent protest – to talk to her mom about what you were all going to eat, and Cody decided to use the opportunity alone with you to his advantage.

"Y/N," Cody said, making you murmur a 'What?' in response. He sighed, "What have I done to you? What did I do to make you hate me?"

"Our first run-in wasn't exactly the most pleasant first impression you could have given someone," you replied, trying to stay focused but knowing he was going to continue.

"How's that?" You instantly looked up at him with raised eyebrows, a dumbfounded expression on your face.

"You tried to get me to apologize for something you did," you reminded him.

"But I told you-"

"You told me to apologize because you're a prince," you stated, your voice raising slightly but not enough so that Sam or her mother would be able to hear, "And as soon as you go back home, you can continue being a prince and riding on your high horse and acting like you're the single most important thing on the whole goddamn planet and that everyone should just stop what they're doing and pay attention to you. But while you're here, you don't get that kind of treatment." You then abruptly stood up, grabbed your books, shoved them into your backpack, and walked out of the dining room.

Cody's POV

Cody listened to you tell Sam and her mom that your dad wanted you home for dinner instead of you staying and while they said goodbye to you, he could tell Sam didn't quite believe it. And his assumption was proved correct as she came back into the room.

"Everything okay?" she asked him as she sat down – even though she knew it wasn't.

"It's fine," he grumbled, looking back down at his book.

"I don't know if you're ever one to talk about what's bothering you, but I do know that talking helps," she offered, "And if you wanna talk about it, I'd be more than happy to help – even if you only want me to listen." Cody was silent for a moment before taking a deep breath and looking back up at her.

"Why doesn't she like me?" he asked, "I... I thought I was being nice, but she just seems to hate me more and more..."

"Well... I think trying to suggest she should apologize for something she didn't do kind of ticked her off," Sam replied, leaning back in her chair, "So maybe you should try saying you're sorry."

"How am I supposed to do that?"

"You just say it," she shook her head, "But you have to mean it too. You can't just say it for the sake of getting her off your back; It has to be a genuine apology."

"What if it is genuine and she still doesn't believe it?" he sighed, putting his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand. Sam was quiet for a moment before letting out a forced chuckle.

"I don't know what to tell you," she answered honestly, "But I'm sure she'll come around eventually."

And while Cody wasn't totally satisfied with that answer, he took it anyway; All he had to do now was figure out how to apologize and hope Sam was right.

~

Your POV; One week later

It wasn't until only a few days after that conversation with Sam that Cody finally decided he was just going to accept that he didn't have a real plan and just apologize the moment he saw you after lunch.

You were standing at your locker, making sure you had everything you needed for your next class. Cody figured it was now or never seeing as Sam wasn't with you this time, so he swallowed thickly and made it way over.

"Hey, Y/N..." he said. He noticed you sigh to yourself but you didn't exactly turn him away, so he went on. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I spoke to you when we first met," he said, making you look at him as you cocked an eyebrow. He didn't know whether the expression was good or bad, but he knew was in too deep to back out now. "It was really rude of me to try and force you to apologize for me not paying attention," he shook his head, "So... I'm sorry..."

"I forgive you," you replied right away.

"Really?" his eyes widened slightly – that was easier than he thought it was going to be.

"If it ends this conversation faster, sure," you replied.

You closed your locker door and went to walk away, but Cody had finally had enough of your attitude toward him. He grabbed your wrist, spinning you around, and pulled you into him so your faces were only centimeters apart. You were about to yell at him, but he didn't give you the chance.

"You wanted an apology and I gave you one, Y/N," he said lowly so no other students strewn about the hallway could hear him, "Whether you choose to believe I actually mean it or not is your own decision, but I've had it with you treating me the way you do. When you decide you want to tell me the real reason you despise me so much, then we can talk. But until then, I'll just give you what you clearly want and stop bothering you." Cody ended his speech by releasing your wrist and walking away, not even giving you a chance to say anything.

And he kept his word – not speaking to you throughout the remainder of the day.