This, obviously, is the second story of my series: Winter. It's actually less of a heart-wrenching romance, but more of an Action/Adventure.

For the full summaries of the stories, go to my profile (at the very bottom). :) They're all going to be HSM, and I'm planning a few spin-offs too.

Happy readings.

He was on top of the world.

Troy Bolton did it. After years and years of hassling from his parents, he survived high school and was on his way to his dream job.

It was funny, because Troy never realized this was the kind of job he'd end up with. Neither could his friends.

He was the captain of the high school basketball team, top of the class and making headlines that he might actually play in the leagues someday. His father would push him to breaking point every time one of the Scouts from an Ivy League college would come, and let's just say they were never unimpressed. He was praised by the teachers and looked up at by the younger students, having the perfect status along with a beautiful girlfriend and a great life.

However, Troy began to reconsider the choices for his future in his final year. He became interested in writing, not just boring essays that made even the teachers fall asleep, but extraordinary works that were full of perfectly summarized pieces with accurate details. They were enough to throw anybody off their seat in alarm and astonishment as they read the major headlines.

His teachers persuaded him to look into journalism, and they voiced their opinions that he would have a bright future in the career if he proceeds with his work. Troy considered and considered and considered… until by the time he sat for the final exam of his school life, he went with it.

Amazingly, his life took a dramatic turn immediately after graduation. Employers all over the country made him gigantic offers to work for them, to write stories or even to report new programs. From Seattle to Maine, Troy was wanted by everyone. It was a dream come true.

He took the offers that were most convenient for him at the time, but as the years passed, his parents urged him to take a chance and shoot for the moon, saying staying in his home state would only limit the boundaries of his dream.

So Troy took their advice, and after almost 12 years of being a successful journalist, he was heading to New York were he would be hired by one of the biggest companies in the country.

"Passengers on Flight 429, your aircraft is now boarding," a cool female voice said through the airport speakers. Troy sighed to himself and pulled his suitcase behind him as he followed the line into the airplane, waving goodbye to his crying mother and father. He smiled at them, suddenly feeling sad and wanting to stay a little longer, but the crowd piled up and Troy was pushed inside.

He let out a puff and collapsed onto his seat in First Class. It was very cold, so Troy immediately ripped open a blanket and wrapped it around himself. Sweeping a hand through his sandy brown hair, he smiled to himself as the grumpy faces of the Coach people slowly disappeared down the aisle. He sat back and pulled out a magazine as a stewardess poured him a glass of champagne.

"Thanks," he said gratefully. The stewardess beamed and then asked for his autograph, for which he gallantly gave her. She went back behind the counter where she thought Troy couldn't see her, and started bickering excitedly to her friends about her meeting with the great Troy Bolton. Troy merely smiled to himself and went back to his magazine. A few minutes later, the captain announced take-off, and before he knew it, they were in the air.

It had been a long time, Troy thought to himself. 12 years. Life had moved on. He watched as his friends grew up and got married, moving away and starting families. It was a weird feeling being so far away from home, but Troy knew he must follow his heart.

But he was lucky too; he wouldn't be alone in big New York City. An old friend from school had moved there a few years ago, and she had already expressed her happiness that he was coming. She already told him of all the wonderful things of New York, and she had already prepared for him to live in the house just down the street from hers.

Now, Sharpay Evans hadn't always been one of Troy's closest friend. As a matter of fact, they used to hate each other. She was always the snobbish rich girl who would get her way no matter what, even if it were to cost the entire school misery. She and her fraternal twin Ryan, would reign the school yards and turn heads just by making their dramatic entrances to the room. Troy smiled to himself and stared out at the dark night sky, shivering a little.

Ah, poor Ryan. Always being bullied and forced to comply with the evil Ice Queen's orders. Troy knew the twins loved each other, but it was uncomfortable watching Sharpay constantly walk over Ryan like he was a doormat.

He hadn't seen either of the twins since the Summer of their graduation, and now it was 12 years later in Winter. He knew they had both changed, and the story behind it was just as interesting.

Troy had always known the Evans family to be extremely rich, but it seems Ryan was the only one still living the good life. Sharpay had been exiled into the world of downtown New York, making her own life and making her own living. Troy didn't know the full story, but he was pretty sure it was because Sharpay married some guy that her parents didn't approve of, and for that she was disowned and her title of heiress was taken away. She was happy, though, living her newly found life, and from what Troy heard, she didn't seem to care for the riches and had no intention of pursuing it ever again. That changed Troy's opinion of her drastically, and he was touched that she was welcoming him.

The hours passed, and Troy eventually fell asleep. When he woke up again, it was morning. The windows were open, but instead of the usual orange sunlight of dawn seeping in, it was only barely light. Troy shivered again and leaned at the window to see, and to his astonishment he realized it was snowing. It was snowing quite heavily too.

The plane landed smoothly at the runaway, and the flight attendants motioned the passengers to the exit, into the airport where they'd collect their baggage. Troy pulled on a thick sweater as he made his way to the gates, a smile spreading across his face as he saw Sharpay jumping up and down and waving her arms at him. Behind her, he saw a man who seemed a few years older than he was, with a young boy sitting on his shoulder holding up a sign saying WELCOME TROY. Sharpay ran over to hug him.

"It's so good to see you again," she said. Her voice was softer, richer, no doubt marriage had softened her for the better. Troy pulled apart and examined her.

She looked just as beautiful as she did as the Ice Queen. Her blonde hair was shoulder-length and looked good even though it clearly didn't look like she had been styling it for hours. She was wearing more modest clothes than Troy remembered, but he figured she probably didn't wear any of her expensive fashion labels as she used to anymore. She kissed both his cheeks and then turned around to introduce Troy to her husband.

He was a friendly looking man, with handsome features, dark hair and hazel eyes. He was slightly more built and taller than Troy was, with a very strong and fit posture, yet he seemed to be so gentle with the little boy in his arms. Troy could tell how Sharpay ended up falling for him.

"Troy, this is my husband, Jason Bennett," Sharpay said proudly. "I've been telling him all about you." Jason smiled and shook his hand.

"It's great to meet you," he said. Sharpay beamed and bent down at the little boy holding the sign.

"And this is my son, Tom," she said. "It was his idea to make you the sign." Troy's eyes widened as he looked over at Tom.

"Your son?" he gasped with disbelief. "Wow… It's great to meet you too, Tom." Tom smiled.

He looked merely five years old, with bright hazel eyes and blonde hair, no doubt inheriting them from his parents. Troy felt a certain vibe from looking at the child, the same kind of vibe he used to get whenever he was around Ryan. In fact, Tom was almost like a miniature version of Ryan. Troy could see the mischief in his eyes, even though he looked innocent and sweet. Troy couldn't help but feel a strong rush of affection towards him. He kneeled down and tousled his hand through the child's hair.

"You made this for me?" he asked, taking the sign. Tom laughed and nodded.

"Mommy's been telling me stories about you," he squeaked. "About how you can play ball really good." Troy raised an eyebrow at Sharpay, who just shrugged.

"He's a fan of basketball," she chuckled. The waiting room was getting crowded, so the group decided it was best to get out of the way. Jason came around and helped Troy with one of his suitcases as Tom began asking questions to Troy, affectionately calling him Uncle Troy.

"So, are you Mommy's friend, Uncle Troy?" he asked, his wide hazel eyes sparkling with curiosity. Troy chuckled.

"I was your Mom's friend a long time ago."

"Do you still play basketball, Uncle Troy?"

"Well… I haven't been playing for a long time."

"Can you teach me how to play, Uncle Troy?"

"Sure, kiddo."

"Are you gonna stay at my house, Uncle Troy?"

"Nope, but I'll be right next door if you need me."

Sharpay laughed.

"I think we should let Uncle Troy breathe for a little bit, sweetie," she said, holding his hand. She pulled his hood over his head and adjusted it warmly as they stepped outside into the snow. Troy felt almost breathless at the view.

December had only begun, but Christmas lights were everywhere. There wasn't much snow yet, but it was definitely enough to make Troy get that wonderful feeling, like it was the happiest time of year. It never snowed this much back home, and at that very moment, Troy never even remembered to feel homesick at all. Sharpay grinned as she watched him.

"Welcome to New York," she muttered. All Troy could do was let out a chuckle of disbelief. He was probably standing there like an idiot, just staring, when he felt Tom tug at his sleeve, urging him to cross the road with him. Tom held tightly onto his hand as they crossed the road, and Troy knew Sharpay must have taught him well. Jason led them to the car in the parking lot and heaved the suitcases one by one into the huge trunk.

"So, are you hungry, Troy?" he asked as they all got into the car. "I hear you haven't had real food in months." Troy was given the honour of sitting in the passenger seat. He laughed as he buckled up.

"Really?" he said. "Where'd you hear that?" Jason started the engine, smiling at Sharpay and Tom in the back through the mirror.

"You're famous," he replied. "On the news, you're the star journalist who made it big from New Mexico. I heard you've been traveling all over the place, and only now you've decided to settle down with a solid job in New York."

"Well… yeah." Troy blushed. It felt weird talking about his career. Sharpay laughed and leaned up forward to the two men.

"There's no need to be modest, Troy," she said. "You have the right to be proud." She reached up and pinched his cheek playfully. "But you need some meat on those bones, though." Troy laughed again and pushed her hand away.

"Oh, it's not that bad, you know. The airplane food's growing on me." Jason stopped at a red light and grinned over at his friend.

"Well," he said, glancing back at Sharpay. "Once Laura introduces you back to her human food, I'm sure you won't ever think of going back." Troy's eyebrows furrowed, looking between the husband and wife.

"Laura?" he repeated, confused.

It was a long trip home, and during that time Troy learned alot. He learned that the whole time he had known Sharpay, her birth name was actually Laura Evans, and that Sharpay was just a nickname her parents gave her as a child. Things had become rocky between the family members, so Sharpay adopted the new identity after she married Jason, as Laura. She now used her new name for everything.

Troy was relieved, however, when she told him he could still call her Sharpay for old time's sake.

He also learned alot about Jason too. He was brought up in a humble family, and he worked as a highly-respected commander in the US Army. It seemed that Sharpay's family had told her that if she were to marry a man of such low class, they would not give her the time of day, threatening to cut off all her connections. But it didn't seem to matter to Sharpay at all, so she walked out of the Evans life and started her own as a Bennett. She confessed Tom had only ever met his grandparents twice, and Ryan was the only other family member she had regular contact with.

As the car pulled into a small neighbourhood, Troy let out an awed gasp at the sight. Every house already had their Christmas lights hung out. It was beautiful. They arrived at a homely looking place that Troy bet his life was the Bennett house. He glanced at the house next door, and smiled to himself.

It was quite a big house. Two storeys high, with a front yard and a car port. Troy didn't have a car yet, but he couldn't wait to start his brand new life in New York City. Jason helped him carry his luggage over to the front yard as Sharpay and Tom followed.

"We'll let you clean up," Sharpay said. She gave him another hug. "When you're ready, come over for dinner, okay?" Troy couldn't help but smiled gratefully.

"That'd be great," he said. "Thanks." The Bennetts all beamed, and while waving goodbye, they retreated back to their house next door. Troy took a deep breath and turned around to his house. He turned the handle and opened the door, stepping inside nervously.

It was expectedly cold, but Troy was far too excited to even care. He sighed as he flicked on the lights, illuminating the bright white walls of his brand new house. Troy went over to the window, drawing back the huge velvet curtain to reveal the clear glass. It was pitch black outside now, and Troy could see the brightly-coloured lights standing out like stars in the night sky. Troy smiled again.

He was home.

Next: Troy enjoys his new life, growing closer to the Bennetts as they get ready for the Winter holidays…