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Romeo and Juliet Redux

Chapter 1 - I Think I Love You

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I never thought I'd feel this way about anyone, let alone my twin brother…

I'm not exactly sure what to call these strange 'feelings' I've been experiencing lately. But I do know that they keep on getting stronger.

I don't think I'm allowed to call it love, though. Love is supposed to be sacred. Love is supposed to be pure. And the thoughts I've been having lately are definitely not pure…

I guess it all started on the first day of High School. Zack was being his usual, womanizing self, trying his luck with every girl in sight. It never bothered me before, but I felt something strange inside me that day. Jealousy.

But why was I jealous? And of whom? Was I jealous of Zack, for being everything I knew I'd never be? No. I was jealous of the girls.

I didn't know what was going on with me at the time, so I just pushed it to the back of my head. And as soon as my brain went into education mode, I forgot all about it. But not for long though…

Thankfully, the rest of the school day passed by without incident. By lunch time, I'd already made some new friends. They were of the intellectual kind – not unlike myself – and the discussions we had kept my brain occupied and free from any thoughts about that morning. Before I knew it, it was time to go home.

After we had finished our homework back at the hotel, it was almost dinner time. The Tipton was like a home to us, and we loved living there. Our mom, Carey Martin, had been offered a job as the lounge singer a few years before, and we ended up moving into our very own suite.

Mom had left us some revolting meatloaf she'd made earlier, as she had to perform that night. Needless to say, the 'meatloaf' she made ended up in the dustbin. I loved my mother dearly, but her cooking was absolutely atrocious…

After I fixed us some lasagna, Zack and I brushed our teeth and headed to the room we shared. I took a quick shower and plopped down on my bed with a book I'd been dying to finish. But for some reason I couldn't concentrate. Thoughts about that morning kept popping into my head. I kept thinking about that strange sense of jealousy I felt. I kept thinking about why I'd felt it. I kept thinking about Zack…

"Hellooo, earth to Cody…" I heard someone say as they waved a hand in front of my face.

"Zack? I thought you were in the shower?" I replied hazily, noticing my book had ended up on the floor.

"Uh, I finished like ten minutes ago. I've been trying to snap you out of that trance ever since… Everything okay?" he said, looking a little worried.

"Sure, everything's fine," I lied.

"Well, if you say so. Night Codes," he said before crawling under his covers.

"Goodnight," I replied, still not sure what was going on with me.

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That night, I had the strangest dream. I dreamt I was running away from something. I was too scared to look back, so I just kept on pushing forward. Finally, after what felt like hours of racing through the darkness, I saw a faint glimmer of light in the distance. As I kept getting closer, I noticed someone standing in a doorway - right where the light met the darkness.

"I know your secret, Cody Martin..." I heard the eerie figure whisper.

"What do you mean? What secret? Who are you?" I said, my voice shaking.

But there was no reply. The source of the eerie voice had completely vanished – along with the doorway to the light.

I felt terrified as I sat there in the pitch-black darkness. The words I'd just heard echoed through my head. What was going on? Was this still a dream? Everything felt so real…

The only thing I could do was shut my eyes tightly and sob…

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"Cody? Cody…?" I heard someone say, too scared to open my eyes.

"Seriously Codes, wake up. You're scaring me," the voice said again, sounding familiar now.

"Z, Zack?" I stuttered, hoping my brother had come to my rescue.

"Yep. You were having a bad dream. You okay?" he asked worriedly.

"I am now," I said as I threw my arms around him and pulled his body tightly against mine.

I wanted to stay like this forever. Zack was the only one that made me feel safe. The only one that would always protect me. I wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms for all eternity. But my dream was crushed when he finally broke the hug.

"Wow. You're acting like you haven't seen me in years. Are you feeling alright?" he said after staring at me for a while.

"Sorry. I was just really scared," I replied apologetically.

"No sweat. Wanna sleep in my bed?" he asked, knowing that I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep by myself.

"Thanks Zacky," I said as I gave him another quick hug.

"Any time," he smiled, leading me across the room.

Zack held me close as he drifted off to sleep, knowing that it would help calm me down. And it did. I couldn't stop smiling at the way he made me feel. So happy. So protected.

Sure, he teased me a lot. But when he was like this, he was simply amazing. He was my knight in shining armor. My Prince Charming. My Romeo...

Wait, what? Did I really just think that…? Am I dreaming again? Have I completely lost my mind? No, it can't be another dream; I haven't even closed my eyes yet. This is really happening. I'm falling in love with Zack.

I'm falling in love with my twin brother…