AN: Okay, so this is the start of new fic AN. So this is my first ever HSM fic, and I only got into the movies a month-ish ago. But it's kinda like an infection, and the more I thought about the movies and the sotry and everything the more I HAD to write something. I realize that this is pretty bad, unrealistic, and that the OC is VERY Mary-Sue. I've been trying to rough her up, but then she just comes across as a troubled teen, which is just a nother version of Mary Sue. So please just bear with her, hopefully she'll get a little more tolerable.
Song in this chapter is called "You've Got A Friend" originally by James Taylor, though I was listening to the McFly version. Both are on youtube if you need to hear them for whatever reason.
Disclaimer: I don't own Disney. If I did, this wouldn't be a fanfic, this would be the plot of the third movie. I also don't own the song. I don't know who does, but it's not me.
Sarah Bolton sat in the back of a gold SUV, watching houses pass by, keeping her eyes peeled for a familiar one. She sighed, pushed her brown hair out of her eyes and yelled to the front "Are we there yet??"
"No, princess." Her father answered sarcastically. "You see, when we get there, I will turn off the car."
"Very funny." Sarah responded. "You should have your own show."
"You know, your uncle and I thought about that once." Her father lapsed into a memory that should have been forgotten long ago. "We were going for a sort of Saturday Night Live feel, but smaller."
"Yes, well, it's very good that someone killed that dream." His wife said next to him. He gave her a small glare before turning into the driveway of a familiar house.
"We're here we're here we're here!!!!" Sarah was bouncing up and down in her seat with excitement. She tore off her seatbelt and had the door open before the engine had been turned off. She jumped out of the car and barely had a moment to take in the sight of the house before she was being bear hugged by a pair of very strong arms.
"You're here you're here you're here!!!" A male voice said somewhere in the hug, and she smiled.
"Dude, what was that-" Sarah heard another voice, this one closer to the house. It sounded vaguely familiar, but it had been nearly six year since she heard it.
"Is that Chad?" She asked the body connected to the arms currently reducing her to a size smaller than normal.
"Yup." Came the reply. "But ignore him for a minute. Let me see you." The arms released her and she took a step back. In front of her was a teenage boy with her same hair and eye color, but a good six inches taller than her. She smiled at the boy who was like a brother to her, even if they were only cousins. "The same as ever." Troy said with a laugh after a moments inspection.
"Sarah!" Chad came running from the house, basketball in hand. "Is that really you?" She nodded. "Wow. You're…" He searched for an accurate word. "Small." He finally decided.
"She's not that little." Troy said. "She's taller than Kelsi."
"Who isn't?" Chad asked. He gave Troy the basketball and held out his. "Let's see if she can remember back six years." Sarah smirked, and shook his hand. After two shakes she slid her hand down his palm, and the two hooked their fingers together.Clenching the hands into a fist, the two raised their arms and spun underneath them, then returned to a normal handshake and shook twice. It was a simple handshake but they had made it up in the second grade. "She's still got game." Chad nodded approvingly.
"That's good to know." Sarah said, raising an eyebrow. "Now will you please greet me properly?" The boys laughed and Chad gave her a fierce hug. He let her go and said "Come on in, you have to meet the girls."
"Girls?" Sarah asked, walking into the house. "As in more than one?"
"Yeah," Troy said. "Chad brought Taylor over."
"Taylor McKessie?" Sarah asked. Chad nodded, an odd sort of dreamy look on his face. "She was so cool! Way too smart, but cool."
"Sarah?" Taylor's voice preceded her as she entered the Bolton kitchen.
"Speak of the devil." Sarah said. She gave her a hug before noticing the girl behind Taylor. She pulled away and gave the girl a quick inspection. "You must be Gabriella." She nodded, looking a little nervous. Sarah laughed. "It's okay, I'm not gonna bite." She gave Gabriella a hug, and she relaxed a bit. When they pulled away, she said "I'm Sarah Bolton."
"Troy's told me all about you." Gabriella said. "It's so great to meet you. I really hope you like East High."
"I'm sure I will." She said. She smiled, but Troy and Chad could tell that it wasn't genuine. Her blue eyes were a bit darker all of a sudden, like the sky as a sudden storm rolled in. There was a slightly awkward moment that Taylor finally broke.
"So do you know what kind of clubs you're going to do at East?" She asked, taking Sarah's arm and leading her back to the rec room.
"Oh, I'm not really sure." She said. "I'm not allowed to try out for the dance team, seeing as that's why I'm here in the first place."
"What happened?" Gabriella asked.
"Troy didn't tell you?" She asked. The girls and Chad shook their heads. "Well, it's a long story. But basically I was on the dance team back at Hartford, but we got accused of cheating at our state competition. Well, the rest of the girls didn't take that too kindly, and about half of them started threatening the team accusing us. Well, they all got shouting, and it was at the point where no one could tell who was saying what. Then one of the girls got pushed, and that was it. Our team was DQd and the entire team was suspended from school for a month. The team mothers fought, but the school board wouldn't change its decision. The seniors on the team ended up missing so much school because of the suspension that they weren't allowed to march at graduation."
"Are you serious?" Chad asked, appalled. Sarah nodded glumly.
"That's horrible." Gabriella said.
"That's why my parents decided to move back to Albuquerque." She said. "They missed the climate more, and they wanted me to get away from Hartford." She shrugged. "I'm really glad to be back with Troy, though." She gave him a quick hug. "I've missed him so much." She sighed. "Especially during that whole fiasco last year. I felt really alone, like I was going through it alone. I wanted to talk to you so much, but it didn't feel right, getting you all worked up about it like Mom and Dad were."
"Hey." Troy pulled away, looking her in the eyes. "Don't ever think you can't talk to me. We're blood. We're together for life. You can always tell me anything." He sighed, then opened his mouth and sang.
"When you're down and troubled
And you need a helping hand
And nothing, nothing is going right
Close your eyes and think of me
And soon I will be there
To brighten up even your darkest night"
Chad, Taylor, and Gabriella joined him for the chorus, their voice a sweet harmony that swept the trouble of the past under a rug.
"You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I'll come running to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah.
You've got a friend"
Chad moved closer to Sarah, taking her hand as he sang the next verse.
"If the sky above you
Should turn dark and full of clouds
And that old north wind should begin to blow
Keep your head together
And call my name out loud, yeah
Soon I'll be knocking upon your door"
"You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I'll come running, oh yes I will
To see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah."
Gabriella and Taylor sang the next verse, each wrapping an arm around Sarah's shoulders.
"Ain't it good to know that you've got a friend
When people can be so cold
They'll hurt you, and desert you
And take your soul if you let them
Oh yeah, but don't you let them"
"You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I'll come running to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I'll be there, yes I will.
You've got a friend"
The song ended there, Sarah smiling at her new and old friends. "Thanks guys." She said softly.
"Kids, dinner!" Troy's mother called into the room. The kids stampeded out of the room as only teenagers can.