So, guys, this story really means a lot to me. I'm kind of starting it off after a long period of uncertainty, and I feel like my writing has matured and I hope it shows in this story. I've tried using new techniques and a more intricate way of writing that I'm still working on but it seems to be getting easier as I go along. The inspiration for this story is obviously the movie version, A Cinderella Story, with Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray. I envisioned Troy and Gabriella as these roles and I immediately fell in love with the story line. However, I do hate reading stories that are like the movies, it's like re-watching a movie, am I right? So, I hope you all are pleased to hear that I'm going to make this story as much unique to the movie as I possibly can, however there will still be some similarities, obviously big ones, like the Halloween ball and her going as Cinderella. Thank you for clicking on it and giving it a chance. I hope you enjoy (:
Disclaimer: I do not own A Cinderella Story or High School Musical, only my own original ideas that I merged in with it.
A Cinderella Story
Fairytales are rather different in some eyes.
The way they are told can affect us in such a way that we never forget them, that we pass them on to our children and these tales continue throughout generations. Most people think of a horse drawn carriage, prince charming, a beautiful sparkling gown that makes the fair maiden stick out from the rest of the unlucky try-hards.
Stories can be read from all different viewpoints, they can be analyzed, dissected, criticized, admired, but most of all they can be memorized. The average human being could not go without saying they have not heard the stories that Disney has created and publicized to the whole world. The stories of beauties and beasts, dwarfs and sleeping maidens, street rats and adventurous heiresses, a long green fin turned to feet.
One story, however, can be changed. It can be tampered with, tweaked, butchered, magnified, anything you want because it is so universal that the original moral can be seen through a vast number of scenarios. This story is one of an unfortunate young girl, a girl who is beautiful yet treated ugly.
Cinderella is one of many fairytales that can be altered through ones inquisitive eyes. Whether you believe or not, whether you are so set on accepting the harshest realities, the ones where you don't get what you want, where you don't stand out from the crowd, but whether you go by any of these at all…
You can still enjoy the fantasy.
See it how you may, but today, this is how Cinderella is set to play.
…
BEEP BEEP BEEP
"GABRISMELLA!"
BEEP BEEP BEEP
"WAKE UP AND MAKE BREAKFAST!"
BEEP BEEP BEEP
"WHERE'S MY ENGLISH PAPER THAT YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO DO?"
BEEP BEEP BE-
Just as she removed her palm from the bulky old alarm clock located on the bedside table, the door to her small attic bedroom swung open, hitting the wall behind it with a THUD.
"Gabriella! What are you doing still asleep? You were supposed to be making our breakfast an hour ago! Get the hell up and get started!"
She groaned, ripping the thin blanket off of her petite body. "Yes, Regina." She groaned again at the raspy sound of her own voice.
The tall lanky woman sneered with disgust at her step daughter before spinning on her tall hot pink stilettos and retreating down the creaky wooden staircase.
"Don't trip." Gabriella muttered sarcastically, shuffling with exhaustion towards her small, closet-like, bathroom. Her olive skin was worn out and her usually rich chocolate brown eyes were drooping with the lack of sleep. She stared at herself in the quaint, dirty mirror. "Great." She spat bitterly, noting her appearance.
Quickly pulling her long dark tresses into a messy ponytail, she grabbed her toothbrush, sticking the paste-full hygienic utensil into her mouth hastily while scampering towards her dresser drawers. She hit the top drawer twice to let out the kink and opened it slowly, for the wood of the dresser was old and fragile. Grabbing a dark blue long sleeved shirt and some old light destroyed jeans, she pulled off her sweat pants with her feet.
She quickly pulled on her jeans and hoisted them up, running back to the bathroom to spit out the foamy liquid that had collected in her mouth. Just as she was rinsing out the paste and splashing cold water over her face, a loud bellow was heard yet again from her intercom.
"GABRIELLA!"
"Shut up…" She tore off her shirt and pulled on the long sleeve. "I'm coming Regina!" She yelled back, collecting the various notes and papers strewn about her small full sized bed that she had fallen asleep on whilst studying. As she stuffed the notes in her bag she slipped on her battered up sneakers and hoisted her black back pack onto her skinny shoulders. "One minute!"
"NOW!"
Groaning, Gabriella hurried towards the stairs right outside her bedroom, grabbing her favorite blue baseball cap on her way.
Just as she shut the door behind her there was a small ding heard from the bulky antique computer located in the corner of her room, indicating that she had a new instant message
A message from the one guy that could make her smile when all she ever seemed to want to do was cry.
…
"Ryan, what the hell are you wearing?"
The lanky pale blonde haired male in her passenger's seat looked down at his colorful attire and shrugged. "The usual."
She rolled her eyes and shook her head, revving up her rusty old pick up truck. "Well then, I guess we need to work on your usual."
He mocked astonishment, though clear amusement was swimming in his eyes. "Ms. Montez, I beg to differ. The ladies love the metro sexual types."
Gabriella smiled with amusement. "Oh, really?"
He wiggled his eyebrows. "Just you wait honey, soon even Vivian Cummings will be drooling at my feet."
She laughed and adjusted the cap on her head. "I don't know what you see in Vivian. She's probably the most materialistic human being I have ever met. And the meanest, no doubt."
Ryan sighed. "Yup. I know. But some day she'll realize that to be with me she's going to have to change."
"Huh," She rolled her brown orbs. "And for that to happen she's going to have to actually want to be with you."
The stylish male crossed his arms. "I resent that."
As Gabriella snickered at his reply there was a loud cough heard from her car.
"Shit, what was that?"
She shrugged. "It's the engine, don't worry. It always does that."
He looked at her with disbelief. "Gabs, one of these days this pile of junk is going to stall and strand you in the middle of nowhere."
"Hey! Don't diss the car!"
He shrugged. "I'm just saying."
"Well why don't you get a ride with your sister then? Or I don't know, get a car of your own so you can drive yourself to school?"
He gulped. "I love your car. It's magical and pretty and will never stall or strand you in the middle of nowhere."
She smirked, glancing over at his cheeky smile. "Yeah," She giggled lightly. "That's what I thought."
"I'd rather die than drive to school with my sister and her loud squeaky friends, even if Vivian is one of them."
Gabriella put her turn signals on, biting her lip as she craned her neck to check out her blind spot. "I don't get why Sharpay follows her around all the time. She's better than that…" She turned sharply to the right, straightening up and glancing over at her best friend next to her. "Or, she used to be better than that."
Sharpay Evans used to be one of Gabriella's best friends; the three as young kids had grown up together and played in the sand box as their parents watched with love. But not only Gabriella's life changed when her father died. Ryan stuck around, let his grieving friend cry on his shoulder and scream with fury at him when she wondered why the world could be so cruel. He stood in the line of fire for her. Sharpay had not been strong enough.
Ryan sighed. "Sometimes it's like I don't even recognize her anymore. I mean, we're supposed to be twins and we haven't hung out since she became one of Vivian's minions. Plus," He smirked, knowing the brunette next to him would get annoyed by this. "She's my sister and she won't even help me get into Vivian's pants."
Gabriella cringed. "Please," She shivered. "Don't ever say that again."
He laughed from the passenger's seat, watching through the window as they turned into the East High School parking lot.
"And you know why I can't get a car of my own…"
She snickered, looking around for a parking spot. "Yeah, cause you suck at driving and every expensive car your dad buys you, minutes later you end up wrecking it."
He glared at the side of her blemish free face. "I too, resent that."
Laughing at his pout she turned for the available parking spot that had just cleared up on her right. "Shit!" She slammed down on her brake, the two bodies in the beat up car jolting forward and slamming back into their seats as they watched with wide eyes as a shiny black range rover sliced in front of them and turned right into their parking space. "You have got to be kidding me!" Gabriella yelled, hitting her steering wheel with rage as the expensive car cut her off.
Just then a bright pink convertible came at a high speed towards them, taking up the next three available parking spaces.
"Come on!" Ryan yelled, watching his sister selfishly claim three spots when all her car needed was one.
"Ryan," Gabriella seethed with clenched teeth. "No offense, but I officially hate your sister now."
He gritted his teeth as well, glancing over at her angered expression. "Non taken."
There was a beep beep as the range rover that had cut them off clicked to a lock as four males came into view and stood in front of their car.
"Oh baby!" Vivian hopped from the passenger's seat of Sharpay's car and scampered over to the four boys. Sharpay, Bethany Lafave, and Jillian Jennings hopped from the car as well in their miniskirts and cropped tops, following their leader to mingle with the boys.
"The nerve of them…" Gabriella said under her breath, watching as the most popular people at their school stood in front of them without a care in the world.
Suddenly, as if not knowing what came over her, she honked her horn loudly, getting the attention of the group.
The three girls all zoned in on her with their intense stares. Sharpay seemed to loosen up a bit as she spotted her brother and her old friend, the other three girl's sported disgusted sneers on their makeup piled faces.
"NERD ALERT!" Jillian yelled, cupping her hands over her mouth and sneering at the two.
Gabriella rolled her eyes, watching the girls glare at her as if it actually affected the much well rounded brunette. The guys were a different story. Although they hung out with Vivian and were considered the most popular guys at East High, they really didn't give a shit. Yeah, they didn't hang out with people like Gabriella nor did they talk to her, but they weren't so stereotypical as to torture her with bullying either. The school had cliques, but it was anything from cliché.
The two known as Jason Cross and Zeke Baylor seemed to be goofing off and pushing each other around as the afro haired male known as Chad Danforth peered into her truck with a curious expression. Now Chad wasn't what most expected, although cocky most of the time, when it came down to it he could be a pretty decent human being. And Gabriella wasn't going to deny that he could make her laugh, even if he wasn't necessarily telling the joke to her. However, she still didn't approve of the choices of company he kept.
Her brown orbs then landed on the king of East High, the golden boy of basketball, the blessed by the god's of good looks, male of the twenty first century. His tall stature leaned casually against his car, the bronze of his sculpted, muscular body glowing under the suns light. Looking up from his shuffling shoes, as if in a world of his own, his thoughtful expression turned into one of curiosity as he gazed towards her as well. Gabriella watched as Troy Bolton flicked the radiant chestnut hair away from his bright, Caribbean blue eyes and indifferently looked at her and Ryan through the glass, wondering who had honked the horn. She wasn't going to deny that his eyes even sometimes made her swoon, they were unforgettably mesmerizing, holding a side of him that she didn't even know existed. Yet.
She broke her stare and shook her head. "Do they not get the fucking hint?" She spat, glancing over at Ryan who was sending disapproving looks to his sister who was currently staring at Zeke Baylor with a bit lip and fluttering fake eyelashes.
Suddenly the group at the top of the social level started walking past the car, the three girls giving Gabriella and Ryan menacing smirks as Sharpay just strutted past them as if they weren't even there.
The boys walked by indifferently, Chad sending over an apologetic look that Gabriella could care less about. She was about to rev up and go looking for another space when a small tap was heard on her window. She turned her head to find Troy Bolton leaning down with an unreadable expression and his hands in his pockets casually.
She furrowed her eyebrows as she pulled down the window. "Yes?" She spat bluntly.
"Look," He sighed. "I didn't mean to cut you off, sorry, I was kinda…I just wasn't paying attention."
Gabriella stared at his flawless face for a moment, trying to read the sincerity. "It's okay." She grumbled, rolling up the window rudely and looking ahead of her. She drove forward and watched in the rear view mirror as the golden boy sighed and shook his head, following his friends to the entrance of East High.
"That was kind of rude Gabs." Ryan commented from the passenger's seat.
The brunette shot him daggers, turning into a space at the end of the lot. "Screw you. He's Troy fanfuckingtastic Bolton, I don't give a shit if I'm rude to him."
He sighed and followed her out of the car, watching as she locked it manually behind her. The blonde walked into step with her as they made their way towards the school. "He never did anything to you, Gabs."
She rolled her eyes. "He's one of them. He's no different from Vivian, no wonder they're dating."
Ryan shrugged. "I don't know…I mean he did say sorry."
Gabriella remained silent as they continued towards the large brick building. She had already made up her mind about Troy Bolton.
…
"Gabi! Gabi!"
She whipped around, the long raven tresses that were currently pulled into a messy ponytail whirling around and smacking the side of her jaw. She looked around, her deep chocolate eyes hidden beneath the blue cap that she rarely took off in public.
"Hey." Taylor said breathlessly, standing before her with an excited expression on her smooth, dark skinned face.
Gabriella smiled with amusement. "Breathe much, Tay?"
The petite African American girl shook her head, her short bob sculpting her muscular face beautifully. "You have no idea how long I've been looking for you."
She raised one of her dark clean eyebrows with alarm. "What's wrong?"
Taylor's eyes widened slightly. "Oh! No, it's nothing bad, don't worry."
Gabriella's face relaxed, looking at her other best friend with a soft smile. "Then what is it, Tay?"
Taylor Mckessie was the one girl friend that Gabriella seemed to be the most alike. They had met their first day of freshman year, and ever since both girls had been extremely good friends. Although Taylor was more confident and walked with her head up and her preppy mature suits hugging her frame with sophistication, she was probably one of the nicest people to ever go to East High School. She was no doubt academically devoted, spending most of her time at after school activities and running the school as student body President. Gabriella was also a member of the Student Council Committee, and was ranked number two-after Taylor of course- in the whole school, but she would never be as driven as her aspiring friend.
"Oh, I was just trying to tell you that the meeting today is cancelled. Principal Matsui wouldn't let me announce it over the intercom, said it was unnecessary." She rolled her dark eyes. "What a prick."
Gabriella giggled. "That was the big news?"
Taylor raised her waxed eyebrows with attitude. She scoffed. "Well excuse me for finding it urgent. I am President after all, it's my duty, and I have to go around and find everyone else on the committee as well so I'm pretty worn out thank you very much. Stupid Matsui, wouldn't let me announce it, huh, well he won't be telling me what to do when I become President of the United freaking States, yeah I'd love to see him-"
"Taylor!" She stopped her rambling friend. Although the two were extremely close, for she was Gabriella's closest girl friend, Ryan would always be her best confidant. Taylor would always put her future first and her goals would always be her best friend. "Chill alright? Everything will be fine. If I see anyone in the committee today I'll tell them too that the meeting was cancelled. Just take a breather, maybe during lunch grab a latte or something?"
She sighed, placing a firm hand on Gabriella's slim shoulder. "Always my personal therapist. Thank's Gabs."
She giggled, nodding with a smile on her smooth pink lips. "No problem."
Taylor grinned and gestured to the hallway behind her. "I gotta run, I'll see you later?"
Gabriella nodded. "Later."
The student body President turned on her heels and strutted down the hallway, people moving to get out of the way. Gabriella giggled to herself and turned around as well, shaking her head as she headed for her own class.
Suddenly a body collided with hers and she dropped the textbooks in her arms, jammed with papers in between the worn out pages, all over the floor. "Jesus!"
She looked up to find Fran and Eliza, her 'evil stepsisters' staring back at her with angry expressions on their unattractive faces.
Fran crossed her bony arms with frustration and rolled her beady eyes. "Watch where the hell you're going Gabriella!" Her tall bony frame towered over Gabriella who sighed and kneeled down to collect her books.
Eliza scoffed, placing her pudgy hands on her wide hips. Unlike her sister, she was short, and rather obese. "You know, mom was very, very, angry this morning. She told us to tell you that you need to get to the diner as soon as possible. You're working tonight."
Gabriella stood up, holding her now mess of a pile of books in her small arms. "I obviously have to go after school ends, I can't just leave."
The stout girl with a heap of makeup flipped her ratty orange hair over her shoulder. "Well that's not our problem. She doesn't need you now, you just have to work tonight. All night." She sneered meanly.
The beauty sighed. "But I have loads of homework to do, plus I have to finish that paper you wanted me to write Fran." She glanced over at the lanky one of the two. "I can't possibly work all night."
Fran shrugged. "Don't care." She nudged her sister. "Let's go."
They both walked off with their fake prada purses, leaving the unfortunate of the three to stand in the now empty hallway with an irritated look on the smooth skin of her face.
The diner was a small restaurant in the center of town that almost everyone went to. It was now called Regina's, previously called Maria's, for it was her mother's first. When Gabriella was six years old her mother had died of cancer, leaving her father and her alone. They did well for themselves, they kept the diner in all its glory, the only thing that reminded them that they were still a family, that Maria would always be with them. When Greg had met Regina, life had not only changed, but turned Gabriella's life into a living hell. The day her father started seeing the Devil she was no longer the only girl in her father's life, although her father made it clear to his little Ella, that she would always be number one. Then just seven months after they had met, Regina Hortie had turned into Regina Montez.
And as if Gabriella's undeserving life could get any worse, the unspeakable happened. Just two years later when Gabriella was just ten years old, her father was crushed and pronounced dead in a car accident. And her whole world went crashing down, independence and all.
She was officially adopted by Regina. And was officially the unfortunate beauty that lived in the old attic.
But that was just how the story began.
…
"Alright my rowdy bunch of miscreants, get a book out, some homework, whatever." The young teacher sat at the desk at the front of the room, leaning back in his big black chair and placing his feet on the wood in front of him. "Study hall begins…" He closed his eyes as the final bell rang. "Now."
Troy sighed at his seat in the back of the large classroom, his eyebrows knit together as he tried to concentrate on finishing his AP Calculus homework. Although he was the godly basketball captain he was also quite intelligent. It was an understatement to say that not many people knew this about him. Suddenly, as if answering his prayers to get a break from the difficult math formulas, his cell phone began to vibrate in his right jeans pocket. He dug it out and read the name on his screen with an erupting bright smile.
It was StanfordSurvivor421.
'Have I ever told u how much I hate my sisters?'
He chuckled at the text and his strong fingers quickly typed a reply:
'I think u've told me once or twice lol'
He flipped his phone shut and tapped the wood of his desk anxiously, waiting for a reply from the mystery girl that he had yet to know the identity of. Two months ago he had met StanfordSurvivor421 in an online chat room about the university. And after finding out that they both went to the same high school, that they both didn't have perfect lives, they had been talking ever since. Troy found this mystery girl more intriguing with every passing conversation. He had learned new things about her since that first chat two months ago, like she was determined to get into Stanford on a scholarship, so she could move far away and finally get her freedom. Freedom from what exactly, he didn't know. He knew she had horrible sisters, but that was about it.
She was easy to talk to, she understood what he felt, that he was different. They told each other when they had bad days, vented their feelings, and now, emailed and texted like they had known each other their whole lives.
Troy had never told anyone his aspiration of going to Stanford University except for this mystery girl, everyone expected him to go to U of A for basketball. His father expected him to go to U of A for basketball. It's not like he was set on Stanford, he was just curious about the school, trying to keep his options open. He wanted other things. He loved basketball, and he didn't want to give it up. But what no one except StanfordSurvivor421 knew was that he also loved children, and hoped to study child psychology in college. So maybe, just maybe, if basketball didn't work out he could help kids overcome physical and mental problems, like paralysis or autism.
His desk vibrated under his cell phone and he anxiously flipped the sleek phone open and laughed quietly to himself at her reply.
'Well I thought I'd tell u just 1 more time'
He shook his head with an amused smile and proceeded to reply.
…
Gabriella sat in the back corner of her English class with a dull expression on her face. She doodled on her black notebook with boredom. Her teacher was currently giving a lecture about iambic pentameter, which she already knew everything about for it was pretty much the easiest concept in the world.
She jumped with excitement as her battered old phone vibrated in her lap. She flipped it open quietly under her desk to see that BBallJunkie14 had replied quicker than she had anticipated.
'I appreciate that! Have I evr told u how much I hate calculus?'
She giggled quietly to herself before replying: 'Eh, once or twice. But trust me, I know how u feel, it's the worst.'
She waited for a reply which just like last time came extremely fast.
'Calc is the only shit that I'm not gud at. ):'
She shook her head and bit her lip as she thought of what to say. Her fingers danced across the keys of her old flip phone. 'R u good at flying?'
She bit her tongue to suppress her laughter at his reply: 'Okay, are u some psycho bipolar druggie or somethin? Cause tell me now so I can cut my contact with u.'
She squirmed with muffled laughter in her seat, glancing up at the teacher to make sure she didn't notice. Once she made sure Mrs. Goodman was too engrossed in her lecture to give a damn, Gabriella looked back down at her phone as her fingers sprang across the keys. 'Just answer the question smart ass!'
'Ok…no, I'm not good at flying. I kinda suck.'
She rolled her eyes at his sarcasm as she quickly typed away. 'There u go, 1 more thing ur bad at. Now calc isn't the only thing.'
There was a little longer wait for his reply, which made her even more squeamish.
'Are u trying to take a dump on my ego?'
She placed her elbow on the desk and her head in her hand, an amused smirk on her face as she looked down at the device in her other hand that rested on the wood desk. 'U guessed it. Haha?'
'Yeah, no.'
She laughed quietly to herself and gazed down at her phone.
She had originally just started talking to this mystery guy when she had come across an online chat room for people interested in Stanford University. One thing led to another and she had been emailing and texting this stranger every day since. At the beginning both had made it clear that it would be dangerous to reveal their real identities, so they kept their really personal information to themselves, like where they lived exactly, who they hung out with, what their name was.
They inevitably figured out that they both went to East High, and every day Gabriella would find herself look at some stranger and wonder if it was BBallJunkie14, the guy that had been her saving grace for more times than she could keep count of. There were over one thousand kids at East High, and the crowded hallways contained hundreds of males that could be the closet therapist that she thought about more than a girl should think of a guy she hardly knew. Over the time that they had been talking she naturally figured out some things about her mystery guy. Obviously, that he was indeed a guy, that was a given. He also loved sports and was a closet genius, and that he did not have a perfect life, much like herself.
'Lol sorry! If it helps, I suck at calculus too.'
She glanced up at her teacher as she instructed the class that it was silent reading time. Gabriella got out her Jodi Picoult novel and laid it out on her desk, her cell phone open and in the crease of her book.
'Eh, it slightly makes me feel better. (; How has ur day been so far?'
She didn't hesitate.
'It just got a whole lot better.'
SO. What do you guys think? Please review! This chapter was kind of just an introduction. I wanted to get the information out first so I could start with the story line! Hope you continue to follow this story. (: