She's never been good with showing my emotions. She doesn't show any emotion towards anybody, no matter how good or bad their situation is. She's really never been in any serious situation with anybody to really show emotion, except for the few family deaths that she's had, but she didn't even know those people so why should she feel remorse for someone that never bothered to come around her? Sure; she could have gone around them, but she didn't even know they existed, so why should she have felt bad about that?
Her name is Sharpay Rockelle Evans. Yes, Rockelle. Her mother's bright idea. Nifty, huh? If you make any jokes about it, you'll go through hell. And don't even think about calling her Rocky. Only one person calls her Rocky, and that's Troy. Gabriella's Troy. He was her Troy first. She's known him for the twenty-one years they've been alive. Gabriella's only known him for the seven years that she's been in Albuquerque. Well, technically, she's not in Albuquerque anymore. She lives in California with Troy. They're both in their junior years of college. She's going to Stanford. Yeah, one of those smart schools. For geniuses. While Sharpay can't stand Gabriella, she's amazingly smart. And pretty. No, not pretty. Gorgeous. Why couldn't she be gorgeous? She thought she was cute, at most. Not gorgeous.
While Troy and Gabriella had been in school in California, Sharpay had been in New York, trying to find herself. Things didn't go her way, what with Boi being the one wanted on Broadway, living in an apartment smaller than her shoe closet, and being closed up in a closet with a tongue–which was the most uncomfortable bed I've ever had to sleep on in my whole twenty and three-quarters years, she complained to Ryan over the phone. Ryan had gone to Julliard with Kelsi. While they were there, they started dating, and were expecting their first baby any day now. Sharpay couldn't stand little kids, but she was excited about becoming and aunt and a little disappointed that she wouldn't get to see the baby very often until Ryan and Kelsi had graduated. She could always make the trip out there–which she definitely would–as long as it wouldn't interfere too much with her job.
After she came home from New York, she talked to Mrs. Darbus and Principal Matsui about getting her job as an assistant drama teacher. When they said it wasn't available anymore, they suggested her take the position as the glee club instructor, since the previous one was hospitalized. She took it, and was given the job permenantly when the other glee club instructor had resigned. Sharpay had just gotten Matsui to make the glee club an actual class, so the kids could get credit for their hard work and amazing talent.
Even though she was still the same person, Sharpay had changed a lot. She wasn't as demanding, she didn't have to have everything designer, she wasn't as big a diva, and she actually found that she could care for other people as much as she wanted without seeming like a wimp. When she was in New York, she met Peyton. Peyton was a film major that she'd taken a liking to. When she moved back to Albuquerque, Peyton stayed behind to finish his last year of college, and promised that he'd move out to Albuquerque so they'd be able to see each other. They both compromised on keeping a long distance relationship, and so far it was going pretty good.
"Sharpay!"
Sharpay's head shot up from the score sheet she'd been looking at, and she let out a small breath, getting up from her seat. School started in about five minutes, and she was waiting for her class to get seated. She walked to the door and peered into the hallway. "Who called me?"
A knock came from a locker next to the doorway. "Help, please…"
With a flick of her wrist, Sharpay opened the locker and sighed. "Who did it this time?" she asked as a thin, freckled boy with glasses stepped out of the locker.
"Tiara's boyfriend."
"Come with me," she said, walking down the hallway.
"You're not gonna go talk to them, are you?"
"No. I'm going to a higher power."
"Coco Versace?"
Sharpay laughed. "It's CoCo Chanel, and no. Principal Matsui."
"Come on, Sharpay, if you go to him then Tiara's going to get her boyfriend to torture me the rest of my high school life," he said as they entered the principal's office.
"Jordan, I'm most certain that Bradley will be graduated by then."
"Have you seen his school work? Pre-schoolers are smarter than him.
Sharpay grinned a little and she knocked on a door with Principal Matsui's name on it.
"Come in," he said.
Sharpay opened the door and raised an eyebrow, putting her hand on her hip, looking at the boy with an East High letterman jacket on, sitting in a chair across from Matsui's desk. "Oh, goodie. Just the boy I was looking for."
"What did I do?" Bradley asked.
"Principal Matsui, Mr. Thomas here locked Jordan Haskell in a locker. Again. Something had to be done about this, I won't tolerate my students being bullied."
"Bradley is being suspended for a number of things already," Matsui said.
"Add one more thing to the list. When you get back in school, I will be watching you like a hawk, Bradley."
"I'll be keeping an eye on you too, Mrs. Evans," Bradley said with a smirk.
"Mrs. Evans is my mother. I'm not married."
"Good, that means I got a shot."
"Not on your death bed. Matsui, please? Something. Jordan can't spend his whole life stuffed in a locker."
"Something will be done, Sharpay," Matsui said.
"Thanks."
Sharpay led Jordan out of the office and she slowed her pace when they got to the hallway, putting her arm around him. "How you been, Kiddo? Mom still doing good?"
"Yeah. She didn't slip this time. I think she's really trying this time."
"That's good. How about your dad?"
"Still haven't heard from him. He doesn't want anything to do with me."
"Well, that's his loss. He should be proud to have such an amazing kid. I know I'd be honored if I had a son like you."
"I'm a skinny nerd that gets picked on every day. Why would you want a kid like me?" Jordan asked, looking up at Sharpay.
"True. But you know, I happen to know a skinny nerd that I used to pick on. You know what she went on to do?"
"What?"
"She's in her junior year at Stanford, with an amazing boyfriend."
"…I'm not a girl."
"Okay, that's besides the point. I can see you going to Stanford. I can see you having a great girlfriend, that's going to stand by you and love you for you. You're a good kid, Jordan. Don't beat yourself up just because you're smart and have glasses. My point is, the girl I picked on never, ever gave up. She didn't let me get to her. At least, not in front of me. From what I saw, she kept her head held high and stayed herself. She didn't let me get her down, and she kept going. You should do the same."
"I can't imagine you ever being mean," Jordan said as they walked into Sharpay's classroom.
"Well, I was. I was horrible. I was popular, I had it all. I got everything I wanted, except one thing, and I thought that if I didn't have everything, even if I didn't need it, then I wouldn't be able to make myself known. It wasn't enough to me that I was the richest kid in New Mexico. I had to have more than what I had."
"Wow. What was the one thing you didn't have?"
"The guy I liked. I've been best friends with him since we were born."
"Why didn't you have him?"
"Because the girl I picked on got to him first. She was herself. She didn't put on a front. If I'd been myself, then maybe I would have gotten him."
"What made you change?"
Sharpay smiled. "I went to New York and met a guy that I started to really, really like. He's finishing his senior year of college and then he's going to come down here."
"You're still together?"
"Yeah."
"Wow… How'd he make you change, though?"
"Well, because he liked me for me. He didn't care if I was all glammed up. He thinks I'm the mose gorgeous girl in the world, with or without make up on. He thinks I'm funny, he likes my corny jokes, he likes how oblivious I am to the most obvious things. He likes how I freak out over the smallest things, and how I cry when I get too frustrated or irritated, and he makes me feel better. He's an amazing guy."
"I'm glad you found him, Sharpay."
"Thanks, Kiddo," she said with a small smile. Even though Jordan was only thirteen, he was one of the sweetest kids Sharpay had ever met. To be honest, he's her favorite student, and she wouldn't even deny it.
"God damn… Police, never understand… I hate all of those donut inhaling mother fuckers," Sharpay muttered under her breath as she entered her house. She got pulled over as she was coming off of the on ramp to get on the highway, because she was going too fast. When she actually did get on the highway, she was being tailgated by someone.
The idiot behind me was on my ass, I couldn't slow down; he would have run into me! I couldn't get into another lane; I was completely boxed in! How the fuck was I the one at fault for speeding, when it was the idiot behind me that was on my god damn bumper! She expressed to the officer.
The officer retorted back with, Ma'am, if you curse or yell at me one more time, you'll get a ticket regardless.
She'd always hated police. When she was younger, she was always pulled over by the same cop. Just running her hand over her thigh, or fixing her shirt to show her cleavage, she got away with everything. She sometimes wished she was still like that. But, she'd gained too much respect for herself to go back to her old self.
Sharpay sighed, putting her purse and jacket on the coat rack by the door, and she closed the door behind her, locking it. She looked out the small windowby the door and made sure the kids across the street weren't messing around by her car. She saw a little blue car parked in front of her house that she noticed as she was pulling into the driveway, and she couldn't help but feel like she'd seen it before.
Letting out a small breath, she kicked her shoes off and walked towards the kitchen. She stopped walking when she saw someone in her living room. Her breath hitched in her throat and when she was finally able to breathe, it was labored. She turned towards the living room, just as the person she saw stood up and turned around.
When she realized that it was Peyton, she covered her mouth as tears filled her eyes, and she ran to him, practically jumping into his arms as she threw her arms around him and let out an unexpected rack of sobs.
"Oh my gosh, I've missed you so much," she said as her voice cracked.
"I missed you, too," Peyton said, wrapping his arms around her, kissing her neck.
"How did you get here?"
"I drove."
"That's a long ass drive."
"It was worth it."
Sharpay closed her eyes and she breathed in his scent. "Mm… We should make up for lost time…"
"Yeah? You just got home and you're already wanting sex? If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were an addict," he said with a small laugh.
"It's not sex, it's making love. C'mon… It'll be worth it… It's Friday. No school tomorrow… We can take as long as we want… Then, we can order dinner and get drunk, and have that drunken sex you seem to like so much."
"You like it just as much as I do."
Sharpay laughed and nodded. "I do… So? Want to?"
"Anything for my girl."
"I like the sound of that…"
After their festivities, Sharpay and Peyton decided to go out to the backyard. They were currently on the hammock, swinging gently back and forth, with their hands clasped together and her head on his shoulder.
Sharpay let out a small sigh. "When do you have to go back?"
"Next Friday," Peyton said.
"But, you just got here…"
"I know. We only have eight months left until I'm down here full time. We have Christmas break, Easter break, your birthday."
"You'll already be here for my birthday, it's in the Summer," she said with a snobby tone.
"Well, see; it all works out."
"Hi Sharpay!"
Sharpay glanced up, looking towards the fence and saw Jordan appearing and disappearing. "Hi, Jordan."
"Guess what."
"What?"
"I finally beat my record on Mahjong," he said, hopping up on the fence and jumping down into Sharpay's yard.
"What level are you on?"
"Eighty-seven."
"I'm on a hundred and six, you'll never catch up to me."
"I'm a nerd, I'll find a way."
Sharpay laughed a little. "Jordan, this is Peyton," she said.
"The one you were talking about at school?"
"The same."
"Peyton, this is Jordan. He's one of my students."
"Her best student."
"Hey, now. You're my favorite student, but I wouldn't say my best."
"Thanks. My self esteem was so high until you opened your mouth right there."
Peyton laughed a little at their banter and he held his hand out to shake Jordan's. "It's nice to meet you, Jordan. Haven't been hitting on my girl, have you?" he asked as they shook hands.
"Nuh uh. Bradley does, though."
"Who?"
"He's another student. He's the bully," Sharpay said. "Don't worry, I never take any of his offers. I'm not desperate."
"Coulda fooled me," Jordan said.
"Don't you have a song to learn?"
"I learned it."
"Prove it."
"Come on, it's a girl's song."
"Prove it or fail."
"You can't do that, can she do that?" Jordan asked, looking at Peyton.
"I don't know anything about teaching, dude," Peyton said, putting his hands up in defense.
"Sharpay, come on…"
"Sing or fail, Haskell," Sharpay said.
Jordan sighed. "I want fabulous that is my simple request, all thing fabulous, bigger and better and best, I need a little fabulous to help me get along, I need a little fabulous, is that so wrong," he sang unenthusiastically.
"What the hell?" Peyton said.
"It's a song I sang when I was younger," Sharpay said.
"If he sings that, he's gonna get his ass beat."
"He will not."
"If I were in high school, I'd be the one beating him up."
"If you keep saying he's gonna get beat up, he's gonna get beat up."
"I am not singing that song in front of people," Jordan said.
"What the hell am I, a dog?"
"Well…"
"Don't say it!"
"Isn't there a dog called Shar Pei?" Peyton asked.
"Yes!" She snapped. "There is, and yes, it's how I got my name."
"Why would your mother name you after a dog?"
"She was on drugs."
"You're a crack baby?"
"No. She was so doped up on epidural, I came out a drug addict."
