Start of Something New

Warning: This is SLASH. If you don't like it, than there's a simple solution... Don't read it!

A/N: I noticed the very few Troy/Ryan slashes here, and being an avid slasher, I decided, why not write one? So I hope you enjoy this:-)

Troy stood on the stage, graciously accepting the thunderous applause and standing ovation he was receiving for his theatrical debut in East High School's winter musical, Twinkle Town. But his mind was far from anything musical-oriented. He was concentrating on not thinking about the electricity flowing from his right hand, which was at the moment linked with his supporting co-star, Ryan Evans. Troy had grabbed Ryan's hand to take their bow for the curtain call, and from the moment their fingers entwined, Troy had felt a sensational spark. Ryan must have felt it too, as he had squeezed Troy's hand as they took the second company bow.

The curtain slowly closed, and the screams and cheers from the cast pulled Troy back into reality. He finally let go of Ryan's hand, not by choice, but because Gabriella had thrown her arms around him in a congratulatory hug. He of course reciprocated, but again, his thoughts were anywhere but on hugging her. She finally let go, and Troy made his way out of the crowd of ecstatic cast members. Ryan caught his eye as Troy moved past him. Troy's stomach did a little flip-flop, and he tried his hardest to ignore it.

Why was he acting this way? Ryan was a guy. Why did Troy feel this attraction to him? Troy had to get out of there, and fast, before he did something he would regret. He quickly exited the stage, walking toward the lobby.

Troy received tremendous praise and hugs from everyone he met in East's lobby after the show. The entire basketball team had showed up for opening night to cheer him on, and were now surrounding Troy, showering him with handshakes and slaps on the back. Chad even went as far as starting their ritual "Wildcats" chant to congratulate Troy.

Troy had a smile plastered on his face, but he basically was just going through the motions. This should have been a great experience for him, the high from his first ever opening night still apparent, but all Troy wanted to do was vacate the premises immediately, without having to face Ryan. He excused himself from Chad and his other friends, and made his way back to the dressing rooms.

He walked into the dressing room, already starting to unbutton his shirt, and upon looking up, immediately froze. There was Ryan, in the midst of getting changed. Ryan was shirtless, and had already changed into jeans.

Troy's breath caught in his throat, as his stomach flip-flopped again and face grew a bit flushed. Ryan finally looked up, catching Troy staring at his bare chest.

"Troy… I didn't know you were there…"

Troy fumbled for a response. "I was just coming to change… beat the rush of people…"

"Yeah, me too. Hey, you going to Friday's?" Ryan asked Troy, indicating the opening night tradition of going to the Friday's Restaurant with the entire cast.

Troy had forgotten all about that. Even though he wanted to bolt out of there, he knew he couldn't skip out of the opening night celebrations. "Yeah, I guess I am…" Troy finally answered back.

Ryan smiled, causing Troy's heart to skip a beat, making Troy even more confused than he already was. "Great! Well…" Ryan pulled a polo shirt over his head, making Troy think he looked like he could be an Abercrombie model. Troy shook his head slightly to get that thought out of his mind as Ryan continued. "I guess I'll see you there. I gotta go find Sharpay and my parents. Bye!" Ryan flashed Troy one more smile before exiting the room, leaving Troy flustered and staring at the empty doorway after Ryan.

When had Troy changed? Why was he having these feelings toward Ryan? Troy's entire outlook of his sexuality had seemed to change in that few seconds their hands touched.

Troy slowly began changing, slightly aware of the fact that the dressing room was starting to fill up with more of his cast mates, all chatting excitable about the night's show. Troy tried to focus his attention on changing, but he couldn't seem to keep his mind from thinking about Ryan. He knew he had to deal with those feelings sometime, but Troy was scared shitless about what all that might mean. He couldn't be gay, right?

A/N: And thus ends the first chapter. I don't really know how many chapters there will be, but it won't a huge fic. Maybe five or six. I don't know... Hopefully I've have the second chapter out soon, but I'm not sure if I'll get it out before I go on Spring Break.

Anyway, hope you like it! It's my first HSM fic, but definately not my first fic here on FFN. If you like the movie Newsies, check the rest of my fics out. hehe...

And now here's the part I love.REVIEWS! Criticism is always welcome, so press that button and review:-)

-Laura