Authors Note; Feeling bummed that Zac wasn't at the HSM reunion. Can't say I was shocked though, feels like he's never there for any of the group gatherings anymore. And he's never at the same event as Vanessa. Given that they run in similar circles, I can only imagine how much work and thought goes into keeping these two separated. And I can't imagine why. Or well, actually I can imagine why. Here are some thoughts swirling in my head. Not sure who's left on here, if anyone, but I'm going to keep believing that love will bring them back together. And I apologize for not updating in ages. Life's been life. I hope you guys enjoy this. Don't be too harsh! It's been a while since I've written anything.
Reading Note: Melissa Kants is Zac's publicist as of 2012. His past publicist was Gina Hoffman. Vanessa's publicist is Jill Fritzo.
It was dumb. Trivial. Stupid really. But it's what they did. For every single event that they were both invited to, their publicists would meet up and flip a coin to see who goes. Heads, and Zac would go. Tails, Vanessa would go. This is just what they've done for the past 5 years (AN: I cannot believe it's been 5 years) to ensure that they wouldn't bump into each other.
The story was that they had stayed friendly. That the split was mutual. And it was. But it still hurt. Just the mere thought of seeing each other or even being near one another was unbearable to both of them. There was just so much history, so many memories, and even after years of being apart, so much love that still lingered.
So when it came time for the High School Musical reunion, Melissa and Jill met up.
"Melissa. Good to see you again." Jill said while leaning in to hug her tall, blonde, colleague.
"Likewise Jill. Are you ready to do this?" Melissa asked as she pulled away from Jill and sat down.
"Let's get started. Do you have a coin?" Jill asked sitting down, while searching her wrists to find a hair tie to wrangle her wild brunette curls.
"Ready to go."
"Ok, let's do this. Like always, heads for Zac and tails for Vanessa."
Melissa tossed the coin and they both watched with baited breath as it flipped in the air and landed in Jill's hand. She covered it with her other hand and locked eyes with Melissa. They held their gaze for a while, both pondering the implications of what the coin flip would reveal. Who would go to the reunion? What excuse could they come up with to excuse their client's absence? Would they need to do damage control? But most of all, they thought about their clients; Zac and Vanessa. They both knew how much their client wanted to go to this reunion. They both wanted to go. High School Musical was what started it all for them. Brought them into the spotlight. Made them household names. And they were forever thankful. But it was also what brought them together as a couple. It's where they first met and where they fell in love.
Shaking her head of the thoughts, Jill lifted her hand and revealed who would be going to the reunion.
"I'm going to call Zac." Melissa said as she took her cellphone out of her pocket and began to call her client.
"And I'm gonna go meet with Vanessa."
"It was good to see you again Jill. Until next time? "Melissa asked as she waved goodbye to her friend.
"Till the next event." Jill said as she winked and gathered her bag and coffee to leave.
-With Vanessa-
Vanessa fidgeted in the chair at Jill's office, waiting for her to get back. She fiddled with her rings, and twisted her hair. She knew Jill went to meet with Melissa and she was anxious to find out who would be going to the reunion. She really wanted to go, but she knew Zac would want to go too. And it was their unspoken agreement that they wouldn't show up at the same events anymore. It would just be too painful. Vanessa hated to admit it, but she still cared for Zac deeply. When he went to rehab, she was worried as hell and broke down in panic attacks and had night mares. And when she saw that he was moving on with Sami, her heart broke. She had always held out hope that she and Zac would get back together one day, but now that he was moving on, and in a serious relationship, she felt as though all hope was lost.
She had thought about the reunion for days now, since she first got word of it actually. Who would go? Should they both go? Maybe they should call a truce...
Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard the front door open and saw Jill buzz by her.
"Sorry I'm late, there was traffic and then I spilled coffee all over the place. Tried to call but my cell died." Jill explained as she tried to wipe down her coffee strained shirt.
"It's ok. Gave me some time to think actually." Vanessa replied with a soft smile.
"Oh good. I'm glad. Listen, I have some news." Jill began but was cut off as her assistant came in.
"Ms. Fritzo, I'm sorry to bother you. But there's a call on line 2." Her assistant, a young redheaded girl said nervously as she held onto a clipboard and nervously pushed up her glasses.
"Tell them to call back. I'm with a client." Jill said eyeing Vanessa.
"They said its urgent . They said they tried to reach you on your cell but you weren't responding."
"Alright then. Thank you, you're excused now." Jill said as she waved her assistant off, leaving just her and Vanessa in her office again.
"So sorry Vanessa. This will be real quick, gimme 5 seconds." Jill said as she sat down at her desk and answered the phone.
"Hello? This is Jill."
-With Zac-
Heavy pants and the sound of his own heartbeat in his ears was all he could hear as he ran on the treadmill that he had installed in his home gym. His cell began to ring, and he stopped his workout; turning off the machine, yanking out his earbuds, and walking off the machine.
He knew it would be Melissa. He was expecting her call. This was why he was running in the first place. To clear his head. Get his thoughts together. He knew she'd be calling to tell him if he was the one going to the reunion or not.
"Hey Mel. Talk to me."
"Is now a good time?" Melissa asked. "You sound weird. Are you panting?"
"Was running. Who won the toss up?" he asked breathlessly.
"Good news Zac, you're going to the reunion! I was so relieved when I saw it was heads. I" Melissa said but was cut off.
"I'm not going." Zac said in hurried breath. He had thought about it all day. He wanted to go to the reunion. He really wanted to go. It would have been so great to see Corbin and Lucas and Monique again. But he also knew that Vanessa really wanted to go. He knew this would mean a lot to her. And if only one of them could go, he rather it be her.
"Pardon? I must have a bad connection or something because I thought you just said you weren't going." Melissa chuckled out.
"Mel. I'm not going. Tell Jill that Ness can go." Zac said while rubbing his neck.
"What do you mean you're not going? Zac, this is huge for your career. It's the 10 year reunion! Fans are going to be upset if you're a no show."
"I don't care. I'm not going." He said adamantly while sitting on the bench and squirting water into his mouth.
"As your publicist, I highly advise against this. People are going to think your turning your back on the HSM gang, and that you're ungrateful for all that it's done for your career."
"I am grateful. I'm very grateful. I wouldn't be where I am today without High School Musical and I know that." Zac shouted. He shook his head and squeezed his eyes closed to try and calm down.
With defeat clear in his voice, he said "Melissa. This means more to Ness. I want her to go. I have press for Dirty Grandpa anyways. She can go."
Melissa knew there wasn't going to be any more discussion. She knew his mind was made up and that there was nothing else she could do about it. Zac was stubborn. And especially so when it came to Vanessa.
After he and Vanessa broke up, he didn't mention her. Ever. It was as if just saying her name, Vanessa, caused him pain. So having him bring her up voluntarily, and seeing the look in his eyes right now, she knew. She could read his body language and see the pain. His actions said it all. Every part of his body screamed it. And she knew with every fiber of her being, that he still loved her.
"We're gonna need to do some damage control then. Come up with a way that allows you to acknowledge the reunion and make you a part of it from a far, while still coming up with an excuse for your absence."
"I'll tape a video for the gang to show during the broadcast. And share some pics on Instagram and send out a few tweets." Zac said knowingly.
"Ok. Well sounds like you have this all figured out. Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Melissa asked his with raised eyebrows.
"Yes. Now, please call Jill and tell her Vanessa can go. Before she tells Ness that I won the coin toss."
"You got it boss." She pulled out her cell phone and called Jill.
-With Vanessa-
"Alright. Ok then. Thanks for letting me know. No. Not yet. Just about to actually. Alright then. Bye" Jill hung up the phone.
"Vanessa, looks like you'll be going to the reunion." Jill told her client with a smile
"Really? When you came in, I thought you were going to tell me that Zac won the coin toss." Vanessa said excitedly as she stood up and went over to Jill.
"Uhhh yeah. You're going! Congrats girl." Jill said as she hugged Vanessa.
"Wow. Must be my lucky day." Vanessa said as she hugged Jill back.
"Mhmmm." Jill mumbled.
"Hey, how come it seemed like you were about to tell me bad news when you walked in?" Vanessa asked as she pulled away from the embrace.
"Did I?" Jill questioned. "Must have just scattered with everything going on."
"You sure?" Vanessa asked again as she eyes Jill who nervously gulped.
"Ahuh." Jill said nervously as Vanessa eyed her again.
"Ok, ok, ok. Here's the thing Vanessa. It is and isn't your lucky day." Jill said as she led Vanessa to sit back down.
"What do you mean?" Vanessa asked confused.
"Well, you were right bout earlier. Zac did win the coin toss. But Melissa just called and said that they forgot that Zac's actually going to be busy when the reunions happening. So you can go instead."
"But, the date and time for the reunion hasn't been released yet." Vanessa said quietly as she was starting to realize what was happening.
Jill took Vanessa hands in her own and looked her straight in the eye.
"We both know that that boy still loves about you."
End Note: Hope you guys liked it! Tell me what you think. Thanks for reading :)