Chapter Two: Reunions
…
"Sharpay," Troy started.
"No," the blonde stated as she dragged the older man across the parking lot, weaving through cars like it was natural. He wondered just how many times she's done this. "I haven't seen you for over twenty years, Troy Bolton, aside from photos on your dad's desk or stories that he tells. But, we have class in twenty minutes and there is one person that you HAVE to see before class starts. All the teachers go here before school. It's practically a tradition."
"Sharpay," Troy interrupted. "I don't even know what the lesson plan is for today."
He was fairly certain she rolled her eyes. "And I'm sure that you'll be fine for five minutes before going to your classroom and throwing it all away anyways to pick up somewhere fresh or spend the entire hour learning about your students," Sharpay responded. "But, before you are able to do that, you need to see the bakery."
She nodded ahead of them, causing Troy to look up and see the bakery that was coming into focus. It had dark brown wood and large glass windows that allowed Troy to see inside the shop at the numerous customers that were piling in. Most of them seemed to be high school students, eagerly grabbing for their first taste of food before lunch in several hours. Despite having a woodsy vibe, the sign above the store had a sign with bright blue letters that read—
"Zeke's Treats?" Troy echoed, looking at the blonde beside him. His voice seemed to betray his emotions, easily allowing the blonde to read them. The last that Troy had heard of Zeke was after his accident, which left him in a state where he was unable to play basketball anymore and had to wear a leg brace for the rest of his life once his leg repaired itself. Troy had been crushed to hear of his old friend's accident and kept up with Jason to hear of his condition. But soon, even Troy lost sight of Zeke's condition, only hearing updates from his father.
But, even his father hadn't mentioned that Zeke had opened a bakery.
Sharpay gave him a small smile. "Been open for a couple months now," she responded. "Zeke finally got enough money to open his own shop after working at the country club as a manager. I tried to tell him that I would help him open the shop but he wouldn't take the money." She shrugged her shoulders. "So I've been slipping a five dollar bill every time I order something into the tip jar. It all goes directly to Shelby's college savings."
"Shelby?" Troy questioned.
"Zeke's daughter," Sharpay filled in. "Sorry, I forget that you aren't connected on any sort of social media." She pulled open the door and ushered him inside. Troy cautiously stepped inside the bakery, looking around at the students who weren't paying them any attention. All the students simply ate their pastries and donuts to their heart's content as they talked with their friends or whoever was across from them. Only a few seconds after Sharpay stepped inside did the door swing open once again.
"Dad," Lucille greeted, beaming at him. Phillip Castillo filed in beside her, making sure the door didn't slam shut. "Phillip saw you guys headed this way so he decided to show me the bakery." She looked around. "Is it always this busy before classes?"
Phillip nodded his head. "Students are given a lot of discounts," he responded, looking around as though he was looking for someone. "I think the owner does it out of the kindness of his heart and all but it brings in a lot of revenue in the early mornings. But it's the best donuts since Krispy Kreme permanently closed down."
Sharpay moved towards the counter, leaning over the white marble to shout into the kitchen but because of the noise of the students around them, Troy couldn't make out what she was saying. He glanced around at several boys who were eyeing Lucille and found himself subconsciously reaching for her hand. Phillip didn't think anything of the gesture but Lucille looked up at him confused and amused.
"Troy Bolton!" a large man came around the corner. It was Zeke Baylor, his former teammate, dressed in a pair of jeans and an old Wildcats shirt. Despite the fact it had been over 20 years, he still looked like the same old Zeke, just older and wiser. And the fact he had a giant, knee brace on his right knee. When he walked, he almost dragged it behind him as though it pained him to move it. However, it didn't slow him down.
"Zeke!" Troy greeted, dropping his daughter's hand to embrace his old friend. It almost felt like it used to be. "It's so good to see you again."
"Yeah," Zeke chuckled. "Things have changed since the last time we've properly hung out." He pointed towards the leg brace before looking around the bakery.
"Yeah," Troy trailed off. "I've had other priorities the past couple of years," he responded, sounding ashamed. And, to an extent, he was. He felt like he didn't know any of his old friends. But Lucille, his son, and his wife had been encompassing his entire life for around 20 years now. He glanced towards Lucille, who gave him a smile that said "I understand what you meant" because of course she did.
Zeke didn't miss the look. "Who's this?" he asked, curious.
"This is my daughter," Troy spoke, reaching out to bring her closer. Lucille stepped closer to him, clinging to his side. "Zeke, this is Lucille. Lucky, this is Zeke Baylor, the best chef in East High history."
Lucille beamed, holding out her hand. "Hello," she spoke.
"Hey!" Zeke beamed. He stepped closer to give her a hug, which Lucille awkwardly tried to return to the best of her abilities. "You need to get back to school soon. If you meet my daughter, tell her hello. She's dating Daniel, Chad's kid," he added. Lucille nodded her head before turning towards her father. Once she wasn't facing Zeke, she allowed her face to portray the confusion that Troy temporarily felt. Both of them knew what happened between Daniel and …
"Mr. Baylor," Phillip spoke up. "Is there a way I can get half a dozen donuts for the road?"
"Of course!" Zeke spoke, moving around the corner. "Troy, do you want one too?" The brunette nodded his head towards Zeke before turning towards Lucille, who stepped towards the counter with Phillip as well. Troy made a mental note to talk to Daniel later, but right now, he needed to focus on his daughter and the upcoming lesson plan for the day.
…
The music room on East High's third floor was vast and huge, reserved for the band to practice their different examinations or (in the fall) marching music. The large room was filled with all types of instruments from drums to guitars to flutes and trumpets and tubas. In the furthest corner was a working piano, which Evan Leverett had long since dubbed his "morning relaxation". He had been coming to the music room every morning since he started at East High and that hasn't stopped in the past three years…though he does have company now.
"Where's he?" Daisy spoke, for the third time in the past fifteen minutes.
Evan Leverett glanced up from his composition to his cousin. The product of a behind-the-scenes photographer and a former Broadway star, Evan leaned towards being more like his father than he did his mother. His blonde hair fell naturally into curls that poked out from his gray beanie. From a young age, he always knew that he was different—add the fact that he liked to kiss boys instead of girls, he always found himself hiding in the shadows even if he had a knack for singing on a stage and dancing.
His cousin stood on the other side of the room by the guitar and symbols. She was a tall brunette with long curls. Today, she had opted to wear a pair of jeans and a simple blue tank top that flowed around her body. It had only been six months that the two cousins knew of each other after his Uncle Ryan distanced himself from his family because… well, it was hard to explain. Now, Daisy Evans-Pierce was living in the Leverett household while Evan's Uncle Ryan… recovered. In the past six months, she had practically become queen of the drama club and manage to form feelings for Evan's best friend.
Not that Phillip Castillo didn't return the feelings and was too awkward to simply come out and say his true feelings.
Evan always found that kissing the target of his affections tended to work in his favor.
"I'm sure he got caught up with something," Evan responded, attempting to figure out what came next in the composition. There was a repetition of the chorus, the change of voices, and then he permanently found himself stuck. He needed to have this done three weeks ago but he keeps finding himself stuck. It's wrong. "I mean, he is the co-captain of the baseball team, on the scholastic decathlon, president of the Chem Club, and apparently being nominated at the president of the Student Council…" He paused, looking at the composition and found himself momentarily side-tracked though his companion didn't seem to notice. "Having a name might help…" he spoke to himself.
But what would he name it?
"Who's she?" Daisy's voice is quiet and soft, so soft that he barely managed to hear it. Evan's eyes flew up concerned, only to find her simply looking out the window. There was a look of pain on her face that caused Evan to instinctively fly off the seat behind the piano, moving to her side to see what she was looking at, before he had even thought about doing it.
Once he was by her side and saw what she saw, he found Phillip Castillo, marching through cars with a half a dozen box of donuts under one arm, and a girl to his left. Evan didn't know the girl (he would find out in homeroom that her name is Lucille Bolton, the granddaughter of Jack Bolton and the daughter of the new teacher) and she didn't look familiar to him. The only thing that he knew was that he didn't know her.
"I don't know," Evan spoke. He tried to put logic to it, to make Daisy feel better. "He's the principal's kid. The new teacher and his daughter was supposed to start today. Maybe Raphael asked Phillip to show her around. He does know the school like the back of his hand." He reached out to touch Daisy's shoulder and saw her barley flinch when he did. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Daisy spoke, as though she tried to apologize for flinching. It was a reflex that she had simply learned. "You're right, she's probably just new."
"Yeah," Evan spoke, looking at her features. "Phillip's just nice like that."
Daisy looked at her shoes. "Do you really think so?"
"Yes," Evan replied, moving towards his things. He placed his composition in his folder before neatly placing it in his backpack. He turned towards her to see that she was still standing by the window. "Plus, I don't think those donuts are for me even if he tries to spin it that way." He glanced over to see her smiling at his comment but didn't comment on the ghosts in her eyes because he knew she didn't like him noticing.
...
After Chemistry class, Lucille followed the swarm of people to the cafeteria, looking around hopelessly at the three-leveled cafeteria that was filled to the brim with tables and students. There were different cliques, each encompassing their own table or in some cases, tables. As Lucille looked around, she spotted Phillip standing in line with a blonde boy who is taller than him. He turned around, spotting her confused and waved at her. Then, his eyebrows furrowed and he pointed behind her.
Then, "BOLTON!"
Two arms encompassed her waist, pulling her off her feet, causing her to squeal as her feet frantically moved to find some sort of solid ground to stand on. She clung on the arms that were holding her as though he would drop her. "Danforth!" she cried, "Put me down." Daniel Danforth, the only person it could possibly be, chuckled in her ear as he dropped her down on her feet. But, he quickly pulled her into a hug before she could even look at him.
"You should've seen me tackle your dad," Daniel chuckled in her ear. "Why didn't any of you tell me that you were coming?"
Lucille chuckled. "It's just me and Dad."
"I know," Daniel spoke, pulling backwards. Lucille beamed up at him. It had been a year since the Danforth family had visited the whole gang of Boltons in California for Christmas. Even her Papa Jack and Nana Alyson were there. Lucille and her brother were the same age as Daniel so as a result, they were all close, practically siblings. It had been the last time they had all been together, walking along the beach, talking about life without feeling the need to look over their shoulder. "Where is your mom and—?"
"London, I think," Lucille interrupted, being aware of the numerous people watching them. Daniel nodded, he understood. There's a shameful look as though he forgot. "Have you gotten taller?" He had. Last year, they had been the same height when Lucille wore boots. Now, he was over a head taller and he was just wearing simple running shoes. His black hair was still as straight as his mother's (his brother had been the one to inherit their father's hair). He wore a pair of jeans and an East High t-shirt.
"Let's get food," Daniel answered, instead. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the line, specifically towards a girl, who was giving her a glare. The woman had dark, almost black hair that curled to her shoulder. She was dressed in a nice shirt and a pair of jeans that curved to her figure along with a cardigan over her shoulders. Daniel didn't seem to notice the glare as he introduced Lucille to Shelby Baylor. "She's practically my little sister," Daniel spoke, beaming at her.
This comment did little to lessen the glare.
The girl didn't stay around for very long because a girl at a table filled with cheerleaders called her over and she kissed Daniel on the lips before moving away. Lucille looked at Daniel, raising an eyebrow in his direction. "Sorry about her," Daniel spoke, turning towards Lucille. "She's got a jealous streak a mile long."
"Is that Shelby Baylor?" she questioned. Daniel gave her a look of confusion and a teasing smile formed on his face. She spoke before he could get the joke out, "I met her dad earlier. He mentioned that his daughter, Shelby, was dating you." She raised an eyebrow. "Did you want to talk about that? Because I have some questions."
Daniel rolled his eyes, knowing exactly what she was talking about. "That was a long time ago.."
Lucille gave him a look. "Was it though?"
"Lucille," Daniel pleaded, his voice low in a whisper as though he didn't want to be overheard talking about it. "I don't want to talk about it. It's a complicated situation."
Lucille looked at him. "Is it complicated?" Daniel threw his head backwards. Lucille reached out to touch his arm. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I know you don't want to talk about it. I won't talk about it anymore." She added, "Here."
Daniel gave her a thankful glance and then promptly started beaming. "I'm going to go appease my girlfriend," he spoke. "Be right back." Then, he darted off over to the table of cheerleaders to wrap his arms around Shelby's waist and kiss her cheek. Lucille watched them, noticing how Shelby beamed at the sudden flare of affection. Lucille turned back in line, realizing she might have just cut in line by fulfilling Daniel's spot.
"So, you're Daniel's friend?" a voice behind her spoke.
Lucille whirled around to find a girl standing behind her. The girl had long deep blue hair pulled up in a ponytail on the top of her head, but Lucille could still see the black roots. Her hair had a slight curl to it, but black wisps of hair framed the side of her face. She wore a black dress with a gray and black striped cardigan over it. She wore a pair of gray leggings with black skulls on it and a pair of black boots. She stood out amongst the color of the groups around them.
"Yes," Lucille spoke. "I'm Lucille Bolton."
"Evelyn Lawrence," she introduced. "I'm Daniel's lab partner." She pointed in the direction of Daniel and Shelby, the taller of the two was talking to the cheerleaders friends behind her. The girls giggled. "He's a real ladies man," she joked, rolling her eyes.
Lucille shrugged her shoulders, briefly adjusting her bookbag. "Yeah, I guess," she responded, noting the sarcasm in her companion's voice. "The school is so much to get used to," she spoke, trying to start a conversation with the girl. "So many things going on."
"Yeah," Evelyn spoke. The line inched forward and the two girls went with it. "This school is every stereotypical clique rolled into one," she spoke. "It's only a matter of time before you try to get shoved into one of them, she warned."
Lucille blinked, looking at her. "What do you mean?"
Evelyn pointed towards Daniel and Shelby.
"They are the typical 'power couple'. The captain of the basketball team and the captain of the cheerleading team. They form together to be the jocks." She moved her finger towards Phillip, who walked out of the lunch with the blonde boy she spotted earlier. "Phillip Castillo encompasses the perfect straight A student cliché with numerous activities being baseball, scholastic decathlon, etc., and not a lot of time to do them all. His best friend, Evan Leverett, is the same but from the musical side of things. Evan has a perfect social life and still manages the time to write the musical, numerous compositions, along with Write Club and Film Club."
"Wow," Lucille mumbled, feeling overwhelmed just thinking about everything Evan was in. "That's a lot."
Evelyn nodded her head. "Everyone has their own clique to stay. If you don't belong, you are alone." She looked around. "Both Evan and Phillip do a lot, but their interests tend to overlap to the same thing. Nothing too drastic. Now, me, I'm into pretty much everything. But, I don't fit in one place so I just wander from group to group. Daniel finds me amusing in Chemistry but once we leave the classroom, he's back into his clique and I'm back in my lonely bubble."
"Sounds lonely," Lucille spoke. "Well, you got a friend in me, Evelyn."
"Evie," she spoke, grinning. "My friends call me Evie."
…
Jack Bolton hated hospitals.
He hated them when his son was born. He hated them when his wife got sick. He hated them even more when she passed away. He continued to hate them when his daughter-in-law was hospitalized and put on permanent bedrest while pregnant with his grandchildren. He hated them more when his grandson was briefly in the ICU. And, he especially hated them after his car accident that was caused by his heart attack.
In fact, he hated them even more. Having to ask for help was something that Jack Bolton never liked doing. But, something he learned that he had to do with a broken leg. In fact, he had a nurse coming in every hour (sometimes sooner) to check and make sure that he wasn't having any symptoms of another heart attack. It was daunting because he felt like he couldn't do anything without having a nurse come care for him.
He let out a heavy sigh, watching the third NCIS rerun he had seen today. He didn't know how in the world he could take another week of the same thing before they even thought about discharging them back into his own house.
"Bolton," Alyson Darbus sat in the corner of the room, knitting something with red yarn. His companion had been his coworker at East High before she moved up into the Department of Education to advocate for more funding for the arts. Her former student, Sharpay, had since taken over her position at East High. Despite the years, her style had not changed, though her hair (like Jack's) had more gray than it used to. "You getting frustrated about being in a hospital will not make that time go faster."
"I can try, Darbus," he rebuffed.
In contrast, Jack Bolton was dressed in nothing but a hospital gown. His right leg was propped up on a stack of pillows while the entire left side of his body was stiffer than it had ever been. What he wouldn't give to get up and move around on both feet. He kept his hair short in recent years because of the amount of gray in it. He had cuts on his face from the glass and his left arm was in a sling.
The two of them had once been enemies. Jack's program gained more money than the drama program as a whole and the former hadn't taken too kindly to Ms. Darbus constantly putting his players in detention for practice. While both long since admitted they were wrong, they still had numerous fights over the matter. They were close, but sharing two grandchildren and being bound by their children's marriage made them even closer.
It was a twist of irony: Jack Bolton's son and Alyson Darbus's adopted daughter.
"Have you heard from Troy?" Jack questioned.
Alyson shook her head. "Not since lunch," she spoke. It was already almost 7. Troy and Lucille were supposed to stop by the hospital after dinner. If practice ran late, it made sense. "But, he took over not only your teaching position but also your coaching position," she spoke. "And there is going to be a championship game in three weeks' time."
Jack groaned. "Don't remind me. Of all the times to have a car accident, it had to be three weeks before the biggest game of the year."
Alyson looked up from her knitting to give him a light glare. "Don't start with that, Jack," she spoke quietly. "It isn't your fault. There's no way that you could've stopped it from happening no matter how hard that you tried. Lucille wouldn't want you beating yourself up like this."
"I know," he spoke.
For a minute, they're quiet. Alyson returned to her knitting while Jack continued on watching the reruns of NCIS. And, for a minute, that's all they are. Then, the door swung open. Jack turned, expecting to find another nurse, only to find his granddaughter walking in with a bag of food from Olive Garden in her hand. "Papa!" she cried, running towards him. She placed the food on his tray and leaned down to kiss his cheek, careful with his arm.
Jack beamed at the sight of his granddaughter. "Hi, Lucky. Did you get taller?" His granddaughter grinned before walking around the hospital bed to embrace her grandmother, who stood up to meet her.
"Hi, Nana," Lucille spoke, gripping her grandmother tightly. Alyson grinned as she pulled back from her, playing with Lucille's brown hair.
"How was your first day at East High?" Jack questioned.
Lucille beamed at her grandfather. "Good! I met a couple people and Phillip Castillo showed me around. But, I met Daniel's lab partner at lunch and we exchanged numbers. Her name is Evelyn Lawrence."
"Oh, Evelyn," Jack beamed. "She's real sweet. Pretty much is into everything. If you want to know if a club is good, ask her. She knows." He looked around as Lucille pulled out a meal, handing it to Alyson and then another, placing it on the table in front of them. "You got us food?"
"Of course," Lucille spoke, looking at them in disbelief. "Dad called the nurse's station and asked if you guys had eaten. And, we already got your meal approved, Papa. When they said you hadn't, we went ahead and got food. When we were headed inside, he got a phone call from Mom so he told me to head inside so I could get the food to you before the nurse spoiled the surprise."
Jack laughed, "Well, thank you, Lucky. That means a lot."
"Evening," Troy called, walking into the hospital room. He closed the door behind him before moving over to the food. Jack noticed that he had obviously been sweating even before he shook his dad's hand. "Hi, Dad, how are you doing?" Jack held his son's hand for a little longer before letting him go. Troy walked around to hug Alyson, affectionately calling her mom.
"I'd be better if I was out of this hospital bed," Jack spoke. Lucille opened up a container and began cutting up the entrée inside. Jack looked and realized that it must've been his from the way she was cutting it. "How was practice?"
"It was good," Troy started.
"We were supposed to be out of there at 6," Lucille interrupted. "He told me to meet him outside of his classroom at 6 then we would leave. But, by 6:30, he wasn't there. So, I went down to try and find him and where do I find him? In the gym, playing basketball with the members of the team, directing them around." She looked towards her grandmother, using the knife to point towards her father. "I was starving."
Jack laughed. "Lucille, you know they have a championship game in three weeks."
"I know," Lucille responded, pouting. "But I was starving and he said 6."
"Lucille," Troy responded. "I promise that I didn't mean to go over on time. I promise that tomorrow I will be there at 6."
Lucille stuck out her tongue in response. "I'm not holding you to it."
Jack laughed. Lucille handed her father his food from the bag, no longer holding it hostage. Once his food was all cut up, Lucille placed it on Jack's tray and cautiously rolled the tray to him so it wouldn't tip over. Jack thanked his granddaughter who moved to grab her own food. Jack talked with Troy about the team while Alyson asked Lucille more about the day.
For the first time in a year, the family was back together.
Even if they were missing two people.
Alright, everyone, there was chapter two! I hope you guys liked this chapter and are still waiting on me to keep it updated. I'm sorry for such a late update but school got in the way. You guys know how that goes, right? See you guys next chapter.
Review/Favorite/Follow if you enjoyed! Let me know your feedback.
Kids (because I realize that it may be confusing because so many new characters):
Lucille Bolton - Troy's daughter
Phillip Castillo - Gabriella's son
Evan Leverett - Sharpay's son
Daisy Evans-Pierce - Ryan's daughter
Shelby Baylor - Zeke's daughter
Daniel Danforth - Chad and Taylor's son
