Disclaimer: Don't own, wish I did
AN: Enter Rad. My favourite ship at the moment, hope y'all like it.
There was a reason that Chad didn't want Troy in the musical. It wasn't because of Gabriella orb the championship game. He knew they would have won regardless. The real reason he didn't want Troy anywhere near the drama club was because of him, the angel that haunted his dreams and every waking moment.
So here they were, sitting across from each other at the lunch table where the new super clique sat. Troy, Gaby, Taylor, Chad, Jason, Kelsi, Zeke, Sharpay and Ryan. Taylor caught Chad staring and smiled knowingly. She was the only person who knew about Chad's true feelings. At the after party he told her everything and they became extremely close. Most people presumed that they were dating, which helped Chad hide his secret. Taylor had been trying to make Chad confess but he always used the same excuse. 'It's not the right time Tay.'
It was that day, around that table, that Ryan confessed his sexuality. With pats on the back and cheers, a small smile graced Ryan's lips as his eyes fell on Chad. He just sat there, his mouth slightly agape as he stared at Ryan. This was a dream come true, a step forward towards his dream life. Taylor's smile widened further as she slightly nudged Chad, bringing him back to his senses. He smiled brightly, clapping loudly and holding his hand out to his friend. Ryan's eyes lit up and his smile widened brightly. Taylor saw Ryan's reaction and realisation hit her. Ryan like Chad back. As the bell rang, Taylor pulled Chad aside in the filling hallway.
"Ryan likes you." She said, getting straight to the point.
"What are you talking about Tay?"
"He is totally into you."
"How do you know that? He only came out 2 minutes ago."
"Didn't you see his reaction?" Chad stared at her blankly. "He smiled twice as wide when you started cheering."
"So?"
"So he only cared about what you thought. I saw the look in his eyes. He is totally into you." Chad couldn't help but beam.
"Are you sure Tay?"
"Positive. You should go for it Chad. Before someone else beats you to it." He gave his best friend a hug.
"You are the best."
"I know. Now come on, we can't be late for class." Taylor grabbed Chad's hand and they half ran to Drama class. As they sat in their regular seats, Miss Darbus walked through the door in true theatrical fashion. She brought the class to attention and smiled.
"Good afternoon class. For your next assignment we are going to split into pairs and we are going to work on scenes from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night." Chad smile. Taylor quickly asked Sharpay to be her partner, and she agreed, leaving Ryan for Chad. Ryan smiled as he walked over to Chad.
"What scene do you want to do?" Ryan asked, trying to keep his breathing normal. He had always had a crush on Chad, ever since he saw him play basketball freshman year.
"Well you're the drama expert, so why don't you decide?" Chad smiled brightly, looking straight into Ryan's eyes. They stood there staring into each others eyes and all Chad could think was if they weren't in class he would have leant forward and devoured Ryan's mouth. Ryan blinked. Breaking the eye contact and bringing the lovestruck teens back to their senses. Ryan picked a scene and they rehearsed for the rest of the lesson. In the final minutes of class Miss Darbus called attention of the class once again.
"OK class. You will be expected to perform your chosen scene in tomorrow's class. So work on it as best you can." The bell rang and the class stood and gathered their bags. "See you tomorrow class." She said to the retreating teens. Sometimes Chad loved Miss Darbus. Now was definitely one of those times. This was the perfect excuse to ask Ryan over. He just had to make it seem as casual as possible. They were walking out in the hall when he looked at Ryan and smiled.
"So Ry, do you wanna come by my house after school to work on the scene?" Ry smiled brightly and nodded.
"Sure."
"Cool. Meet me by the fountain after school." He said before retreating down the hallway.
Ryan's heart was beating a mile a minute as he quickly made his way to Sharpay's locker. When he arrived, he saw her checking her make-up in the mirror.
"Shar!" He said excitedly.
"Hey Ry. Why are you so excited?"
"Chad just asked me over to his house!"
"OMG that is awesome!" She said as she wrapped her arms around her twin. Sharpay was the only one who knew about Ryan's crush on Chad. They told each other everything and that's probably why they were so close.
"But what if he really just wants to rehearse? And isn't he dating Taylor?" Ryan pouted.
"So? You're still going round his house. This is a major step forward." Shar noted as she closed her locker door and linked arms with Ryan.
"True. I am so excited! This day can't get any better!"
The rest of the day seemed to drag for Chad. Ever other minute he was checking the watch that adorned his wrist. He couldn't focus in class and all he could focus on was Ryan. When the bell finally rang he ran as fast as his feet would carry him out of the classroom and to his locker. Dumping his books and grabbing his basketball, he slammed his locker door shut and made his way out of school and to the fountain. He spotted Ryan sitting on the edge fiddling with the strap of his messenger bag and smiled. He couldn't look more perfect in his eyes than he did at that moment. Taking a deep breath, Chad made his way over to where Ryan sat.
"Hey, you ready to go?" Ryan jumped slightly before looking up at Chad and nodding.
"Sure am. Let's go." He said standing up and brushing his pants. They walked over to Chad's car and climbed in. The journey to Chad's house was full of stolen glances and sing-a-longs to the radio. When they arrived Chad killed the engine and got out, followed closely by Ryan. They entered Chad's house and Ryan scanned his new surroundings. It was quite a large house. The stairwell and hallway were covered in family photos. Ryan smiled when he spotted one of a little boy holding a basketball.
"Is this you?" He asked Chad as he pointed at the photo. Chad blushed slightly.
"Yea." He looks so adorable. Ryan thought as he followed him into the living room. They sat next to each other as Ryan pulled their scripts from his bag. Chad raised an eyebrow.
"You wrote up or parts?"
"I got bored in free period." Ryan shrugged as he passed Chad his copy.
They rehearsed for a while, and Ryan was impressed by how well Chad could act. He sat there and stared in awe at the God that sat beside him. He must have been staring for a while because Chad got a worried look in his eyes.
"What?" He asked.
"Nothing. I was just wondering why you don't audition for the musicals. You can dance and act amazingly well."
"Not as good as you. And I can't sing to save my life and last time I checked, that was a large part of a musical." Ryan laughed lightly.
"True."
"You're so cute when you laugh." Chad said smiling before he realised what he said. He threw his hand over his mouth as he watched Ryan's cheeks turn pink. "I didn't mean that." He said through his hand.
"Really?" Ryan said as he moved closer to Chad. "Because I was kinda hoping you did." He reached out his hand and slowly moved his from his mouth.
"Really?" Chad asked as he swallowed hard and leaned forward slightly. He nodded.
"Really." Leaning forward, he closed the gap between their lips and kissed him softly. Chad intertwined their fingers and kissed him back. After a few minutes of sheer bliss, they pulled away, breathing heavily. They looked into each others eyes and smiled.
"Wow."
"Yea."
"How long have you liked me?"
"Since freshman year. You?"
"Same. You do realise you're the only reason I go to the musicals every year." Ryan laughed.
"Same with me and basketball games. I could never pass up an opportunity to see you in shorts." Chad smirked.
"So will you go out with me?" He asked, hope glittering in his brown eyes.
"I'd have to think about it." Ryan said, leaning back into the couch. When he saw the look of disappointment on Chad's face he laughed. "Of course!" He said pulling him into another kiss.
The next day, around that table, Chad came out in front of all his friends. They all cheered and clapped and Taylor hugged him tightly. And it was that day they told their friends they were together and the first time they were truly happy.
