In Which Ryan is Oblivious, and Chad Gets His Man, a high school musical fanfic

Disclaimer: So not mine. And sorry about the diabetic sweetness, ^^;;

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Ryan Evans was a romantic at heart. He wanted to be loved and cherished. He wanted someone to be there for him. He – he wanted what Troy and Gabriella had, only with less tit and more dick.

He wasn't going to find that at East High, though. He was the token gay drama dork. And the current object of his affections was so far on the other end of the high school social scale that he was practically in a different world. And, you know, straight. That sort of put a damper on any romantic picnics for two and candlelit dinners.

If he were as conniving as his sister, he was sure he'd come up with a plan to seduce Chad Danforth, but that wasn't his forte. And he sure wasn't going to ask Sharpay for help – she'd criticize his taste in men, then try and set him up with Ricky, the cute masseuse with the accent and highlights.

And, Ryan thought vindictively, the brown roots.

Next year he'd be off to college, though, and then he'd have his pick of guys. Guys that weren't dead-set against everything he enjoyed. Guys that enjoyed the finer things in life. Guys that would know the meaning of romance – and it wouldn't involve a feeble bouquet of flowers and asking a girl before all and sundry to go to prom.

Well. It might involve flowers. Or chocolate. Ryan wasn't too worried about the particulars.

Chad Danforth was the exact opposite of everything Ryan should have wanted in a man. He was loud and obnoxious, and he wore those stupid t-shirts all the time, and he wouldn't know culture if it was dancing naked in front of him. And, you know, straight.

Ryan wished he could convince himself of how wrong it would be to fall for him.

Yet here he was, for the fifth time in as many days, lurking behind the bleachers to watch – ugh –basketball practice. Watching sweaty men jump around and half-tackle-hug each other trying to get their hands on each other's balls … well, maybe basketball wasn't all that bad. And watching Chad move was … mesmerising. Like a dance that Ryan wished he could do but knew he'd stumble his way through.

And then Chad looked over near Ryan's hiding place. Ryan nearly bolted at that, but logic reminded him that he was hidden. So he stayed, barely breathing as Chad kept glancing over at him, thankful when Coach Bolton sent the boys into the locker room. He made a break for it, stopping only when he was in the safety of the theatre.

"Hey."

Ryan's head snapped up. Apparently, not as safe as he'd thought. "Hey," he replied, all his drama training keeping his voice calm and collected.

"You were at practice," Chad said. "Again."

"Don't be silly," Ryan said, a little panicky. "Why would I be at a basketball practice?"

"Five."

"What?"

"Not a practice, five practices."

"I was n--" Ryan paused. "Wait. How would you know I was at five practices?"

Now it was Chad's turn to stammer. "I — that is – you don't hide very well. Dude, sparkles?"

"I can't help looking my best!"

Chad laughed softly at the indignant look on Ryan's face. "I know. It – it works for you," he admitted.

Ryan flushed, tipping his hat playfully before Chad grabbed it and plopped it on his own head. "Pink is so not my colour," Chad said, though he made no move to remove the hat, merely heading down to the front row to have a seat. Ryan followed, sitting down beside Chad.

"You, uh, you looked good out there," Ryan said.

"Thanks. But, why were you there? Basketball's really not your … thing, is it?"

Ryan shook his head. "It's not. I was just curious, that's all," he lied.

Chad didn't look convinced.

There. Ryan saw that head of hair again. Chad was stalking him! Or something … trying to drive Ryan mad.

It was hard to concentrate when he wanted to go confront the other boy, ask why he was here, invading Ryan's space. But hopefully Chad would still be there by the end of rehearsal – if not, Ryan would catch him later. They had a number of classes together, and Ryan could be sneaky if he wanted to. He had that little navy blue number somewhere back in his closet that would work well for spying.

Chad was still there, though, and for a brief moment Ryan panicked. What would he say?

"Hey," Ryan said as he joined the boy in the back row of seats. So he wasn't as witty as he'd wanted to be.

"Hey. You're good."

"Thanks."

"What are you rehearsing for?"

Ryan shrugged. "Just running scenes. Auditions for the winter musical don't start for another month, so now it's seeing what show it will be."

"Well, you're really good anyway."

Ryan smiled over at Chad, pleased that he thought he was good at something. "Of course I am," he said playfully, and Chad laughed. "Did you have practice to get to?"

"Not tonight."

"Want to … go grab a drink or something?"

"Alright. But your treat, since you asked me out." Chad winked at the blush that spread across Ryan's face at that.

They walked down to Starbucks together, talking about homework and college plans and which teams they thought might get into the World Series.

Ryan just hoped Chad couldn't see how he fawned over the darker boy. Chad was smarter than Ryan had given him credit for, funny and sweet, and he liked to touch Ryan, a hand on his arm, flicking at his hat playfully, half-hugging him when Ryan said something particularly amusing.

For a minute, Ryan allowed himself to pretend they were really dating.

"Hey," Chad said, bumping Ryan's shoulder with his own. "Mind if I eat with you today?"

"Don't you want to sit with your friends?"

Chad shrugged, stealing Ryan's apple from his tray. "Nah. Troy and Gabriella are having an off-week, and I don't think I can take another minute of his moping. Besides, we're friends, too, right?"

Ryan smiled, pleased to be considered Chad's friend. "Don't suppose you're offering to sit with Shar as well, huh?"

"How about just you and me?" Chad offered. "We can go sit outside."

"So Troy doesn't find you, right?"

"Caught me." Chad smiled that dazzling smile that always made Ryan weak-kneed and special. "So, what do you say? Want to?"

Ryan smiled and snatched his apple back from Chad could take a bite. "Lead the way."

"The answer's five," Ryan said, peeking over Chad's shoulder to see what had the boy so engrossed. He looked cute chewing on the end of his pencil, though.

"How'd you get it so fast?" Chad asked, scribbling down Ryan's answer without bothering to check it.

"Well, if a negative costs X dollars, and the first ten are 3X over 5 dollars, and the final ten are X over 5, you want to simplify those equations …" Ryan paused, already noting the glazed look in Chad's eyes. "You … really don't care, do you?"

"Not in the least."

Ryan sighed. "I could tutor you, if you want. So you know how to do it on your own."

"Would you? My math grade is crap. I keep expecting Cohen to just fail me and be done with it. And then I'd lose my spot on the team, and there goes college …" Chad looked up at Ryan. "I mean, I'd love for you to tutor me."

"Great. We can start after practice today. Want to come by mine?"

"It's a date," Chad agreed, smiling.

Ryan smiled back, though not as happily. If only it really were.

"Tell me something."

Ryan looked over at Chad, smiling at the way the light breeze played in his hair. "Tell you what?"

"I don't know. Anything."

"Unlike my sister, I'm a natural blond?"

Chad snorted. "Yeah. Like that."

"You tell me something, too."

"My favourite movie is Love Story."

"Not Bring it On? I'd've thought you'd be all for cheerleaders."

Chad chuckled. "Nope. I'm a hopeless romantic under it all."

Ryan's heart skipped a beat, but he held tight to his control as he spoke: "Bet Troy loves that."

"He doesn't know. Just you."

"I'm honoured that you trust me."

Chad grinned. "Yeah, just don't use that against me later on, okay?"

"It's your favourite. Peanut butter and banana pie," Chad said, dropping the paper bag in front of Ryan. "Mom made it. Thought you'd like it."

Ryan glanced up at the other boy. "Don't you want it?"

"Nah. I saved it for you." Chad smiled. "Besides, we've got the rest of the pie at home. Missing a piece at lunch won't kill me."

"Share it," Ryan bargained. "I'd feel bad taking it all from you."

Chad nodded. "I'll agree to that," he said, sitting down impossibly close to Ryan and stealing his fork.

Physics class was always boring, Ryan thought, but today it seemed worse than usual. The minutes dragged by, and he just couldn't seem to focus on anything. His notes were nothing but a collection of scribbles and little hearts. He and Chad were getting closer, and it wasn't helping Ryan get over his crush.

"I got tickets to Jersey Boys," Chad whispered in Ryan's ear. They'd been hanging out together for almost a month, but Chad had never even mentioned an interest in theatre before.

"What?" Ryan whispered back.

"My mom's got tickets to go see Jersey Boys, and she said I could invite someone along. She's taking her new boyfriend, and I think she expects me to take a date, too."

"So ask Taylor," Ryan said, scratching out the hearts on his paper angrily.

"I want you to come with me."

"Why?"

"Because you like this theatre stuff, right? I thought maybe you'd want to go with me. I know I won't be as interested or as smart as you or your sister, but …"

"I'd love to go with you," Ryan whispered, ducking his head to hide his blush.

Chad smiled brilliantly at him. "Great. Maybe we can go out to dinner first, if Mom's not planning something already. Somewhere dressy, since Mom said it's tuxes only …"

"Of course it's tuxes only," Ryan said. "I bet you look good dressed up."

It was Chad's turn to blush, and Ryan didn't think he'd ever seen anything so cute before.

"Wow," Chad said as he opened the door. "You look … really good."

"Thanks." Ryan supposed he did; he'd dressed to the nines to impress Chad and his mother. Even if he couldn't have him as a boyfriend, he could still gain his mother's respect. "You, too. Except for that tie."

Chad shrugged. "Can't find the clip-on." He tugged again at the tie, trying to make it lay flat.

"You're hopeless. Doesn't your mom's date know how to do this? Hold these," Ryan said, shoving the bouquet into Chad's hands away and knotting the tie expertly.

"I think he stole my clip-on, actually."

Ryan chuckled. "Well, you're set now. You look amazing."

"Who are the flowers for?"

"Your mom. I wanted to thank her for the tickets."

Chad smirked. "I invited you. What do I get?"

"Well, I'm your date, right?" At Chad's nod, he continued. "You get me on your arm, hanging on your every word. That's thanks enough, isn't it?"

Chad shrugged. "I guess. Not as nice as flowers."

Mrs. Danforth came downstairs then in a breeze of perfume and pearls. "So you're the young man my little Chad is so taken with," she said, and Chad groaned.

"Mom! He's just my friend, okay? He's way too cool to date me."

Ryan blushed, snatching the flowers back from Chad. "These are for you, ma'am. Thank you for inviting me."

"Thank you, Ryan," Mrs. Danforth said, smiling. "I'll just put these in water and we'll be on our way."

Chad smiled, taking Ryan's hand as they headed for the car. Ryan smiled back shyly, heart pounding, mouth dry, and his palms were sweaty, but he wasn't going to let go first. Not this time.

"I had fun," Ryan said softly, leaning against his car. He'd already seen Jersey Boys, but it was a thousand times better with Chad sitting beside him. "You seemed to like it, too."

"Yeah, well, I liked the company."

Ryan smiled. "Me, too."

Chad took a deep breath, then leaned forward, pressing his lips to Ryan's for a moment, awkward and nervous and more like Ryan would expect to kiss an aunt than like someone he liked.

"What was that?"

Chad rubbed the back of his neck. "I've wanted to do that all year," he admitted. "I'd better get back inside. I'll see you Monday, right?" Ryan nodded, still a little dazed. "Great! Um. Drive home safe."

Ryan nodded, touching his lips, watching Chad race inside before getting in his car and driving himself home. He made it up to his room before he let himself think about it, and he smiled.

Chad … liked him. Liked him like he liked Chad. That was the only explanation.

But – and Ryan hated to think like this – what would this do to their relationship at school? Would Chad come out? Let Ryan hold his hand and kiss him and be romantic? Or would he still be the jock taking pity on the drama kid?

Ryan sighed. There was a lot to think about, but he couldn't bring himself to worry too much. Chad had kissed him, after all.

Monday morning had Ryan second-guessing himself all over again. Maybe Chad hadn't meant it that way. Maybe it had just been politeness. Or a joke. Was he supposed to pretend it hadn't happened?

But then Chad was there, throwing an arm around his shoulders in the hall. "Word on the street is there's a pop quiz in English," he told Ryan. "Hope you spent yesterday reading Catcher."

And it was just like before. Ryan sighed. A part of him had hoped that things would be different after the kiss.

Chad looked at Ryan, half-frowning. "Sit with us at lunch today?" he asked, obviously hoping to break Ryan's melancholy.

"Yeah, sure."

"Great! Let's get to class. If I'm late once more, I'll get detention. Again." Chad took Ryan's hand, dragging him toward the building, and Ryan couldn't help but smile.

Maybe things hadn't been too bad before the kiss, anyway.

Chad spotted Ryan the second he entered the cafeteria, and he took Ryan's hand, leading him over to the rest of the team.

"Guys! I finally got him," Chad said proudly, and Ryan stood, tensed for he didn't know what, but whatever it was he thought the Wildcats would do to him didn't involve hugs and congratulations.

"Geez, Evans, could you have held out any longer? Chad's been pining for months!" Troy said, and Ryan blinked, confused.

"I'm … sorry?"

"You should be," Zeke said. "If you hadn't caught on soon, we were going to take drastic measures. Like tying you up and letting Chad have his wicked way with you."

Ryan glanced at Chad, who shrugged. "Maybe sitting with the team is a bad idea?" he asked, and Ryan laughed.

"We could go find somewhere where the company is a little less … enthusiastic … about our relationship," Ryan agreed. Besides, being alone might mean he could kiss Chad – really kiss him – again.

The Wildcats cheered, and Ryan blushed, ducking his head and hurrying away from them, Chad on his heels, laughing.

The blond kept moving until they were outside the theatre before turning to look back at Chad. "Pining?" he asked, blushing bright.

"I … may have mentioned to Troy that I sort of really liked you," Chad offered. "You know, once the team realised I didn't really look at girls the way they did."

Ryan laughed, leaning in to kiss Chad softly. "I like you, too," he said, then pressed his face to Chad's shoulder. "And that sounds … so pathetically middle school, doesn't it?"

Chad snorted. "It kind of does," he agreed. "But it's okay. It doesn't make this whole thing any less scary and amazing, you know? I mean, now we're dating, right?"

"Right," Ryan whispered, smiling wide.

"So I can get Troy to stop setting me up with slutty boys while the rest of the team is off enjoying half-naked women."

"Does Gabriella know about that?"

"Hell, no! It's one of those things nobody talks about. Pregame tension relief, Coach calls it. Actually, I might have to kill you now that you know our sordid secrets," Chad said, smirking.

Ryan just kissed him again.