Girls Night

By angellwings

Ryan sighed and glanced back at his bedroom door. He was distracted by the fact that Kelsi Nielson was across the hall at that very moment. Since graduation his sister had been…friendlier to the other Wildcats. Sure she was still Sharpay. Still selfish and into all things fabulous, and being nice was certainly a challenge. But his twin was certainly trying. As a result of her "new leaf" she had invited Kelsi, Gabriella, Taylor and Martha over for a "girls night". His sister had threatened him with certain death if he tried to interrupt their "girl bonding time".

It was increasingly hard to stay away though. Especially since he knew he had very little time to start things up with Kelsi. They would all be heading to college in the fall. Of course he and Kelsi wouldn't be too far apart with her at Julliard and himself at NYU, but it wouldn't be like it was now or had been before.

This summer Ryan and Sharpay were, of course, back at Lava Springs, but things were a lot less tense for everyone this year. The Wildcats were back as staff, and in order to make up for what they were put through the previous summer Sharpay and their mother had gotten them all honorary member status. They still worked regular shifts their new status just meant that during their off time they were free to use the club facilities. Kelsi was back as rehearsal pianist and general accompaniment pianist which including the Lava Springs Talent Show. Even the talent show would be different this year. There would be no Star Dazzle award given out this summer. The show had become an outlet for anyone who would like to perform and NOT a contest. Sharpay and Gabriella had come up with the idea to merge the Staff number and the Ryan and Sharpay's number so therefore Ryan had been spending a lot of time with Kelsi as a way to help her out.

Really he'd just been looking for an excuse to spend time with her. Senior Year had changed a lot of things for him, and one of those things was his view of the composer. They had attended prom together as "just friends" as they had both constantly assured the other Wildcats, but Ryan knew that was a lie. At least for him. He had a genuine interest and affection for Kelsi. He wouldn't call it love, but there was definitely something there he wanted to develop.

And now the issue was how to make his move. He'd been trying to figure out the best way to go about it since before summer even started. He knew it being summer and Kelsi working at the club again would make things more convenient for him, but so far it was JUST as difficult to get up the nerve to actually DO anything.

Ryan threw the book he was reading down on his bed. There was no point for him to even pretend to be doing something. He quickly made his way downstairs to get a soda, and as he headed to the kitchen their doorbell sounded. Ryan answered the door as the doorbell was pressed a second time, and was NOT surprised to find Troy, Chad, and Jason standing on his doorstep.

"Hey, Evans, how ya doin', man?" Chad asked. He somehow seemed too casual.

Ryan lifted his left eyebrow and grinned at them, "You're definitely not here to see me."

"Of course we are. We can't just come by to hang out?" Troy asked.

"Not when you're girlfriends are upstairs in my sister's bedroom; no," Ryan smirked before turning to Jason. "Why are you here?"

Jason shrugged, but looked suspicious, "No reason."

Jason and Kelsi had broken up halfway through the previous summer. Kelsi had told him it was because there just wasn't a spark. As far as he knew it actually WAS mutual, and Kelsi and Jason were still friends. Annoyingly close friends in his opinion.

"You guys might as well come in, but you should know…Shar is prepared to fatally wound anyone who tries to ruin their fun."

"We heard, that's why we have a secret weapon on the way," Chad said with an evil grin.

"Secret weapon?" Ryan asked curiously.

Troy chuckled, "Dude, Ryan, you look like you want them to come down here as badly as we do. Somebody up there you're interested in?"

"Is it Martha?" Chad asked.

"Martha? No it's not Martha," Ryan said in shock.

"You two are pretty close," Jason noted in a strange tone.

"Yeah, we had to be because until this past year everybody else had coupled off," Ryan told him. "Martha's nice…she's just not my type."

There was a knock at the door.

"That would be the secret weapon," Chad said as he turned around and opened the door where they all found Zeke grinning on the other side.

"Sorry, I'm late guys. I had to let them cool," He told them as he stepped inside hold a plate covered in foil.

"Let what cool?" Ryan asked.

"Oh, just my latest fresh batch of White Chocolate Chip Cookies. Sharpay's favorite," Zeke announced proudly as he pulled off the tin foil.

"Wait, let me guess, your plan is to lure them down here with THOSE cookies? Yes?" Ryan asked.

The four guys nodded.

"It'll never work," Ryan told them all as she shook his head. "They took enough junk food up there to fill a couple hundred vending machines."

"No vending machine snack holds a candle to MY cookies, my friend. We just need to figure out how to let them know these babies are down here," Zeke said proudly.

"Could we just knock and tell them?" Jason asked.

"No, dude, we need something with more…finesse," Chad said as he rolled his eyes at his friend.

"Finesse?" Troy asked with a smirk, "Has Taylor been giving you "Word of Day" vocabulary lessons or something?"

Chad smiled sheepishly, "More like "Word of the Week". For every word I use properly I get to—"

"Man, we do NOT need to know," Troy said.

"Teach her one rule of basketball," Chad finished with a glare at his friend.

"Oh, sorry…I thought—you know what? Never mind," Troy stammered as he cleared his throat.

Ryan heard his mom approaching and brightened, "I've got an idea."

"What is it?"

"No time to explain…just roll with it," He told them as he mom stopped next to the group.

"Well, hello boys," She said with a smile.

"Hi, mom. Is it okay if the guys and I hang out down here?" He asked.

"It's perfectly fine, Ducky, just try not to disturb your sisters party," She said as she began to walk off. She paused as she passed Zeke. "What is that wonderful smell?"

"That is Zeke's cookies, mom," He told her with a smile.

"Oh, well, Zeke, you must be quite the chef," She said as she smiled at Zeke.

"I'm sure Zeke won't mind if you have one," Ryan said with a pointed look at Zeke.

"Oh! Yes, please, Mrs. Evans have one. They're white chocolate chip," He said as he offered her the plate.

"Maybe just one," Mrs. Evans said as she grabbed a single cookie off the plate. "You boys have fun!"

They all watched Mrs. Evan walk up the stairs.

"What was that, Ryan?"

"Wait for it," Ryan grinned.

Mrs. Evans took a bite of the cookie as she headed to her bedroom, and exclaimed to herself, "Oh my goodness, I think this is the best cookie I have ever had."

A few seconds later the Sharpay stuck her head out of her door, "Mother? Did you say cookie?"

"Yes, sweetie, would you like one?" She asked her daughter.

"What kind of cookie is it?" She asked as she anxiously nibbled on her bottom lip.

"White chocolate chip," Mrs. Evans said simply. "There's an entire plate of them downstairs. Zeke and Troy and those other boys from the basketball team brought them by."

"Zeke?" Sharpay asked with an excited smile.

"Troy?" Came another voice from inside the room.

"Yes, they're all downstairs with your brother," Mrs. Evans said before continuing on her way to her room. "You girls have fun!"

Taylor pulled Sharpay away from the door and back into the room.

"It's a trap," Taylor told her.

"B—But its cookies…Zeke's cookies…and white chocolate," Sharpay said with a pout.

"They're trying to lure us down there," Martha told her as she shook her head. "I guess a girls night is too much for Chad and Troy to take."

"Well, they won't ruin it. This night is for us not them. We'll just have to ignore them," Gabriella said in an unconvincing tone.

"Can't I just go and get one cookie?" Sharpay asked as she twirled a blonde hair on her finger.

"She's not gonna stop asking until you say yes," Kelsi said with a knowing look at Taylor.

Taylor sighed, "Alright one cookie, but we ALL go. We get a cookie, and we come STRAIGHT back. No chit chat or flirty smiles."

All eyes turned toward Gabriella.

"What? Hey, I CAN resist Troy, you know? It's not impossible," She told them defiantly.

"Sure, you can resist Troy about as much as Sharpay can resist Zeke's cookies," Kelsi said with a smirk.

"You were the one that kept asking Shar if Ryan was gonna be here," Gabriella accused.

"I did not KEEP asking. I asked once…maybe twice. That's it," Kelsi told her.

"Girls? Are we going to get those cookies or not?" Sharpay asked.

Martha rolled her eyes and snickered, "Come on, let's get this over with before we ALL go insane."

"Remember: grab the cookie and leave. Nothing more, nothing less," Taylor said as they headed out the door toward the steps.

The minute the five of them heard commotion in the hallway they perked up.

"They're coming," Troy said as he noticed movement at the top of the stairs.

Ryan merely grinned, "I'm a genius."

But what they expected to happen once the girls reached the bottom of the stairs did NOT happen. All five of them walked right past the boys without as much as a peripheral glance. As they were coming back through with their cookies Taylor dropped her napkin, and Chad took the opportunity to make a move. He quickly rushed forward.

"Here, let me get that," He said as he leaned down and picked up the napkin for her. Their eyes connected and he flashed her a charming smile.

Taylor blushed and grinned at him flirtatiously, "Thanks."

They stayed just where they were for a few minutes frozen in the room.

"Tay! Taylor!" Gabriella yelled in frustration. "TAYLOR!"

Taylor jerked her head towards the group of girls as she realized what was happening. She internally cursed herself, and sprinted away from Chad, "Coming!"

"What was that?" Sharpay muttered as they made their way back up the stairs.

"I can't help it. It's the curls," Taylor responded. "They have this magical pull or something."

Gabriella rolled her eyes, "If I could resist those baby blues of Troy's just now then YOU should have been able to resist the fro."

"And these cookies? They so make me wanna jump Zeke's bones, but did I? No," Sharpay said as she shook her head.

"Well, that was an epic FAIL," Chad grumbled as he plopped down on the couch.

"Not quite," Troy grinned. "At least we know they're not invincible. You definitely cracked Taylor a little."

"So now what?" Ryan sighed.

"Basketball," Troy said brightly.

"Dude, they've seen us play a million times," Zeke said.

"Not like this, they haven't," Troy said with a smirk. "Is there a court around here?"

"There's half court in the back yard next to the pool," Ryan offered.

"Man, you got a ice-skating rink hidden somewhere around here too?" Chad asked sarcastically.

"No, but we do have a Tennis Court," Ryan told him.

"Why do you even GO to Lava Springs? Your house practically IS a Country Club," Jason said in amazement.

The girls had started a movie before they began to hear noises and voices from outside. Sharpay's window faced the back yard. She could see their half-court and the pool. Kelsi and Martha were the one's closest to the window and the two girls who ended up getting up to inspect the source of the noise.

"Oh my," Kelsi said with slight shock.

"What?" Sharpay demanded.

"They're playing basketball," Kelsi said as her eyes never left the game.

"So, we've seen them play basketball before," Sharpay scoffed.

"Um, I bet you haven't seen them play basketball shirtless before…wow, Ryan's actually pretty good at basketball," Kelsi said as she watched the game.

"Shirtless? You're telling me that they ALL have their shirts off?" Gabriella asked.

"Oh, no, only Chad and Troy have their shirts off," Martha responded as she too was mesmerized by the game. "I think they're playing shirts verses skins or something."

"At this rate, they are definitely going to win. Kelsi and Martha aren't even dating the other two and they want to go down there," Gabriella said hopelessly.

"There's gotta be a way that we can go down there without them winning," Kelsi suggested as she looked over at Martha who was still glued to the window, "Next time you try to deny a crush on Jason I am definitely going to use this moment against you."

"I do NOT—"

"Save it for someone who'll believe you, Martha." Sharpay told her. "Girls, this is where all my years practicing the art of Manipulation come in handy."

"Do you have a plan?" Taylor asked.

"Oh, yeah, and one that's definitely going to win," Sharpay said with a wicked grin.

"What are we going to do?" Martha asked.

"Well, do you see what's beside the basketball court?"

"A pool?" Kelsi asked.

"Exactly, a well lit and heated pool. Perfect for a night time swim, don't you think?" The blonde said as she smirked victoriously, "You all brought your swimsuits in case we decided to swim, didn't you?"

"Shar, you are evil," Taylor grinned.

"I know," She said with a giggle. "Chop, chop girls, we've got a battle to win."

"Um, would it be too weird to wear a hat with my bathing suit?" Kelsi asked sheepishly.

"A hat? In the pool? At night? Yeah, that might be a little too weird, Kels," Martha told her.

"Why do you want to wear a hat in the pool anyway?" Taylor asked.

"Well, I just feel all…exposed without a hat," Kelsi told them thoughtfully.

Sharpay rolled her eyes and scoffed, "You are SO meant to be with my brother."

"Um, thank you? I think," Kelsi called after the blonde as she went to go change.

"Oh no."

"Look away, man, LOOK AWAY."

"I can't…I mean just LOOK."

"They are evil, no BEYOND evil."

"Is that…a gold bikini?"

The guys had promptly stopped their basketball game as the girls had come marching out to the pool. Sharpay had donned a metallic gold bikini, Taylor and Gabriella were wearing cute yet modest tankinis, Kelsi was wearing a halter suit with a skirted bottom that had a vintage feel to it, while Martha wore a cute, low cat, slimming one piece.

"Dude, how are we supposed to beat that?" Jason asked.

"We can't," Zeke said. "And you know what? I don't really mind."

"No, we are not going over there. We can beat them," Chad told them.

"Um, yeah, I don't really need to win…not when Sharpay is wearing a gold bikini," Zeke said apologetically as he raced to the pool.

"Okay, fine. So, we're one man down. We can still do this," Chad said as he crossed his arms in determination.

"Um, two men down," Ryan said.

"What? Evans, you cannot leave."

"Sorry, Danforth, but I've only got a limited amount of time to make my move, and I'm not wasting any more of it with you guys. No offense," Ryan said with a grin.

"Make his move on who?" Troy asked in confusion as he watched Ryan head over to the girls. Ryan stopped and sat on the edge of the pool next to Kelsi.

"Small Person? Ryan wants to make a move on Kelsi?" Chad asked. "I didn't see that coming."

"At least it's not Martha," Jason said with a grin.

"Oh, man, not you too? You gotta stay, we can still win this thing," Chad begged.

Jason merely shook his head and joined Ryan, Zeke, and the girls.

"I think we've got to face it, Chad. We're done, and as much as a brother to me as you are…Gabriella's waiting and…she's kind of the whole reason I'm here right now so…I'm gonna go," Troy said as he slowly began to walk away.

Chad sighed. There was no way he could do this by himself. He caught sight of Taylor smirking at him. She chuckled and waved coyly. Chad merely shook his head and smiled. He wasn't really surprised. He never won an argument with Taylor. He kaughed and bowed in surrender. She smiled and motioned for him to come over.

He didn't need to be told twice.

Random idea I had the other day…hope you guys enjoy it!

angellwings