A/N: So yeah, I think that there aren't as many Zekepay stories as there should be. So I decided to make it my duty to write one. This might be a one-shot but who knows, if you guys really like it I just might continue.

Summary:

He's constantly trying to prove his affection. Constantly trying to show just how much he cares about her. Constantly trying to show her that love isn't just an emotion, but a person. Zeke Baylor.

Rating: T

Love is a Four Letter Word

It was just another Friday afternoon at East High, the basketball squad was in the gym running drills, the brainiacs were in the science lab conjuring up equations, and of course Sharpay and Ryan Evans were in the auditorium running lines for one of their upcoming shows. Yep, just another Friday. As the day continued to wind down and more people began to leave the school with big plans for the weekend, Troy Bolton, Chad Danforth, Zeke Baylor, and the rest of the basketball team exit the locker room with one thing on their minds. Food. It was like a ritual for them to go by Zeke's house after school to practice and eat some of his homemade chocolate chip cookies.

"Hey Zeke what's the hold up?" Chad asked as he notices his friend heading toward the auditorium instead of the exit. All the boys knew what this meant. Zeke was going to go into the auditorium and for the billionth time since the 6th grade, he was going to ask Sharpay Evans to go out with him. And for the billionth time she was gong to say something along the lines of "in your dreams", "no way", "evaporate" or something like that. It happens just about every day.

"Oh man not again." Troy groaned.

Before the guys had a chance to complain and tell Zeke how much of a mistake he was making, he was already halfway down the hall and walking into the auditorium. There was no bringing him back now.

"Come on guys," Chad said, "we'll just wait at my house until he comes to his senses." With a deep sigh Chad and the rest of the gangs exit the school building and begin to plan the rest of their weekend.

When Zeke finally enters the auditorium and sees Ryan and Sharpay packing up their dance bags after a long rehearsal his heart jumps. She looks so beautiful. Her hair may be in a messy ponytail, she has on a slightly worn (yet still very fashionable) pink sweat suit, and her face is red from constantly yelling at her brother to correct a step, but to him she's beautiful.

When he finally works up enough courage to go up to the stage his heart skips a beat with every step that he takes. Butterflies begin to form in his stomach. It happens every time he sees her face. But as soon as Sharpay sees him standing in front of the stage out of the corner of her eye she groans.

Not him again.

She was getting tired of him bothering her everyday, although she did give him an A for effort. Everyday he would come up to her and ask for her to go out with him, and everyday she rejected him.

"Hey Zeke," Ryan said with a smile as he looked at Zeke, "practice over?"

"Hey Ryan, and yeah I just came by to talk to Sharpay."

She groaned and rolled her eyes when he said this. Zeke noticed her resistance, but he didn't care. He needed to make his feelings made once again. Ryan also noticed his sister's reaction. It always made Ryan kind of sad to see the way Sharpay would treat Zeke. It seemed as if everybody but her could see how much of a sweetheart Zeke was.

"Well, I'll leave you guys alone then," Ryan said as he grabbed his bag and walked toward the stage exit, "I'll see you at home Shar."

As Ryan walked out he heard Sharpay smack her lips behind him. He didn't care though; he just wanted Zeke to be able to try to melt his sister's icy cover. When Ryan left the auditorium Zeke hopped onto the stage and walked over to where Sharpay was standing with her back turned to him with her arms folded.

"Hey Sharpay," he began with a genuine smile on his face, "I know I ask you this just about every…"

"Don't even waste your breath Zeke," Sharpay bluntly stated as she turned to face him with an icy glare.

"But I just wanted to know if I could maybe make you some cookies later or…"

"Don't you get it Baylor?" Sharpay cut him off.

"I don't like you, I never will, you're wasting your time even thinking about us being together."

Her words cut into him like a knife. She's rejected him before, but she's never said anything like that to him.

"Just stick to your baking, which isn't even all that great." She added just to add insult to injury.

Her last words hurt him the most. His heart beaten and broken, he made his way out of the auditorium without another word, tears flooding his big brown eyes. And she just stood there watching his back. She wanted to run after him, but her ego wouldn't let her do it. See, deep down Sharpay always care somewhat for Zeke, but she knew that she would never be good enough for him. While he was a sweetheart with a singing voice that could melt anybody's heart, she was the East High Ice-Princess, the drama queen that will do anything to get a lead role in a play.

Ignoring the voice in the back of her mind, she grabbed her bags and stormed out of the auditorium. While passing her locker on her way out of the school, she saw a small note stuck on it. She quickly snatched the pink sheet of paper and began to read it out loud.

Dear Sharpay,

I'm sorry that I've been pestering you so much. All I ever wanted was to make you care about me as much as I care about you. Ever since the 1st grade I've had such a big crush on you. From the very first time that you yelled at me to give you the red crayon, I've been stuck on you. But I guess you don't, and never will, feel the same way. I will always have these feelings for you Sharpay. Always.

--Zeke

With tears in her eyes and a strong pain in her chest, Sharpay dropped the note in a hurry and ran off to go find Zeke. She ran outside and saw his car still parked in the student parking lot so she knew that he couldn't have left, so she ran to the one other place that he could have been, the kitchen. Just as she expected he was in there standing over the oven. He ever even saw her sneak over next to him. She could see that he had been crying. She felt terrible for hurting him like that.

"Hi." She said to him in a small voice. She moved closer to him so that their shoulders were almost touching. When he heard her voice he felt as if a few pieces of his mangled heart jumped right back into place.

"Hey." He said while trying to hide the tears that wanted to fall.

"Zeke I…"

"Don't say it," he started as he turned to face her, "you made it perfectly clear how you feel."

"But Zeke I just wanted to say that I was sorry about what I said, and that I read the note that you left me." Her last few words becoming softer.

"Yeah well don't be. I feel like a damn fool for thinking that these feelings are mutual." He shook his head at the thought and turned to the knobs and buttons on the stove. His words almost made her cry.

"Zeke you need to know, seeing you sometimes brightens my day, whenever I see you in the halls I smile on the inside,"

"That's…"

"I'm not finished Zeke," she said while putting a hand up, signaling for him to let her talk, "an attraction has always been there for you," her voice got softer as she finished her sentence, "I just know that I won't be good enough for you." She turned her head away in an attempt to hide the tears that were forming in her eyes.

"Sharpay," he started as he placed his index finger under her chin to get her to look at him, "you're more than good enough for me. If anything, I'm the one that doesn't deserve you."

He removed his finger from her chin as he continues to look into her eyes. They both stand there quietly before Sharpay finally apeaks.

"Zeke, if you're still up for it, I think I might want to try this relationship thing." She started as she bit her bottom lip. "But if you don't want to it's find with me, you deserve somebody that-"

She was cut of by Zeke capturing her lips in a kiss. It began soft and gentle with both of them just standing there stiffly. But as they each became more comfortable, their lips began caressing each others and the kiss became more passionate. He let his hands slide around her waist and rub up and down her back while her hands shot up to his neck. After a moment or so, he pulled away and looked into her eyes with a smile on his face.

"I take it that's a yes." She asked with a giggle.

"Definitely."

And once again they're caught up in a fiery kiss. He had her pinned against the stove with his hands running up and down her spine when he abruptly pulled away from her.

"What's the matter?" she asked with a frown.

"Do you really think that my baking is bad?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

She giggled and shook her head as she wrapped her arms back around his neck and continued their moment of passion. For it was on that day that Sharpay Evans finally learned a lesson needed to learn. She learned that love was a four letter word. Zeke.