After Graduation…
Chapter 1:
Years stretched by for the used-to-be Wildcats. Over time, they had changed; some matured, some didn't, some developed extremely successful careers and others not so much, but they had all changed into very different people.
Taylor welcomed 2 beautiful twins into the world, which the girls, Taylor's family and herself, of course, took responsibility for. Taylor named her baby girl Keisha, while she named her baby boy Keane. Taylor successfully completed her studies at Yale University during light hours, while her parent's would babysit the twins. She graduated with honours as a highly trained lawyer.
Now, 7 years later, she has founded her own office for successful lawyers and owns a small 1-storey house for her and her twins to live in. Life was beautiful for the once East High's brainiac, but she often hid the fact that she was still in love with a brown-eyed, curly-haired Wildcat jock.
Chad started a career with the Chicago Bulls; he finished college at U of A and was almost picked at once to join the Bulls along with his friends Jason Cross and Zeke Baylor. He was also known as a total player, and not for his basketball career. Once he was out of a relationship, he would gear up for a night on the party circuit until he had a new girl with him. The truth was, the longest time he was ever single was when he broke up with Taylor on the first summer in college. Chad had dissed Troy for what he did to Gabi. Even though he had a great job and the fact that he could have any girl he wanted, he still missed his best friend and his ex-girlfriend.
'Sharpay Evans' was one of the biggest names in the Drama, Dance and Music Industry. She had won 32 Teen Choice Awards, 26 Breakout Actors and was nominated for her 7th Oscar. Although her career was in perfect condition, her social life was always the highlight of her day. She was dating the #1 hottest guy in the world (named by 'E!'), Drew Holson, and 2 of her best friends were her housemates. Yep, Kelsi and Martha had moved in with Sharpay. Martha was a well-recognised Choreographer and Kelsi was one of the top 3 composers in all of America, as well as being the most precise Broadway critic in the world (that's right! You heard right! That shy, little girl in high school grew up to be the world's toughest Broadway critic!).
Ryan finished college at Julliard with Kelsi, but they both parted to follow their own hopes and dreams. With the money his parents gave him to start off with, he bought a huge penthouse apartment in Central New York. He auditioned for Fame, Les Miserbles, Oliver Twist and other well-rated Broadway hits before he landed a role in the Broadway musical; Hairspray. His first show was the show that guaranteed him a place in Broadway. 7 years on, he's livelier than ever and as famous as ever. He has moved on from his past and never looked back. The only times he was reminded of times in high school was when Kelsi reviewed the shows he did. Only God knows that he was the reason why Kelsi became a tough critic.
Gabriella Montez, from the moment she walked into East High, everyone knew she was destined for greatness in her own quiet way. She had made a huge impact on the town of Albuquerque, New Mexico and she took the impact and moved it on to the big world. She was now living in a beautiful penthouse in central Los Angeles, 5 minutes from Sharpay and 15 from Taylor. She worked multiple jobs; Designer, Recording Artist, Architect and an amazing Foster Parent. Gabi, took in newly orphaned teenagers, as well as their siblings, and gave them a place to call home until the eldest turned of legal age and was allowed to care for their younger siblings. She never had trouble with the kids she took in; she was honest with them, but she also realised that they were also fragile. Her days were always busy, but she found a way to make it work for everyone. She worked 5 days a week, kept Saturday as social day to spend time with her family and friends and kept Sunday as a day to spend time with the kids.
Troy had lost a lot of things since high school; his gorgeous high school sweetheart, his best friends and, he knows, himself. A year after graduating from Berkerly, he was offered a chance to play with the Los Angeles Lakers. After a week's consideration with his parents, he accepted the offer and moved to LA. He ran into Sharpay and Kelsi in his first year as a Laker and it didn't go well at all…
Flashback…
Troy was roaming Beverly Hills Mall, trying to find something to spill the extra cash on. He was walking out of a sports shop when he ran into a familiar blonde and her friend.
"Oh! Gosh! I'm so sorry!" Troy exclaimed without looking at the blonde.
"Oh, no! You shouldn't…Troy Bolton?" the blonde retorted.
"Sharpay?" asked Troy in astonishment when he finally looked up. "Kelsi? Hey!"
Sharpay recovered from the shock trance she was previously in. She straightened her back, held her nose high and clenched her teeth. Kelsi next to her was curious at where this event would lead.
"Let me rephrase what I just said," stated Sharpay. "How dare you! You could have ruined my newly manicured nails that cost $500! Would you like to pay for these?"
"Actually, I'd be glad to," teased Troy.
Sharpay scowled at Troy's joke. "This is no joke, Bolton!" and with that, the high school drama queen stalked off.
Kelsi, however, didn't move from her spot. She was just looking after Sharpay, as was Troy.
"It's not the only thing that's not a joke," whispered Kelsi sadly.
"What?" Troy wondered, "Kelsi, what did you just say?"
"Oh, grow up, Troy!" exclaimed a frustrated Kelsi. "We all know what you did to Gabi! That's the reason Sharpay just blew up in your face."
"Kelsi, that was 4 years ago," stated Troy confused.
"No, it was 3, actually," corrected Kelsi, "Gabi never forgave you for what you did to her and we'll never forgive you for the pain you caused her. Sorry, Troy…"
Kelsi then walked off, leaving a dazed Troy Bolton behind.
…Flashback Ended
Kelsi had just reminded the Lakers superstar just how much he had lost since high school. The next day, the paparazzi had a field day with the fight that occurred between the 3 celebrities.
Gabi's Story:
Gabi woke up at 6:00am to go for her early morning run. She left a note for Danny and Di-Di, telling them that she left breakfast on the table, their lunches were ready and not to wait for her to get back.
Gabriella walked out of the lobby as she waved good morning to the staff that she saw. She stopped outside the entrance to tie her hair in a messy ponytail and to turn on her iPod touch. The brunette beauty ran as fast as she could without breaking her pace. Suddenly, a familiar tune started playing into her ears,
Kelsi Neilson-Can I Have This Dance
It was the song that made her fall more and more in love with Troy Bolton, former Wildcat Basketball Captain, current Los Angeles Laker. Every time she heard the song, she would skip it to the next, but not this time. Gabriella slowed into a walk and entered the park. She sat on a swing for a while. Minutes were wasted before, ever so suddenly, she broke out into tears. She cried and cried over what used to be a beautiful romance with the Lakers superstar. She subconsciously reached for her neck, hoping she'd feel the chain that would give her the comfort she needed. But, as she feared, there was nothing there, just her silky, bronze skin. She cried to her heart's content, but she didn't know she was being watched…
A photographer for Elle was hiding in the nearby bushes. He snapped pictures of the crying girl over and over again. He felt sorry for her, even though he didn't know why she was crying, he didn't want to hand in the pictures to his boss but he needed the extra cash.
Gabriella stood up from the swing, and wiped her tears away. She hoped that Danny and Di-Di had left for school, so they wouldn't have to see the tearstains on her face. She needed comfort and she needed to be in a place that reminded her of home. So she took off, once again, but she turned into the route to Taylor's house.
Taylor's Story:
Taylor had just arrived home from bringing the twins to pre-school and was about to settle into the couch with her coffee to watch TV. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Taylor put down her mug, turned off the TV and opened the door. The doorway revealed a really depressed Gabriella. Seeing the state her best friend was in, Taylor's heart broke. She brought Gabi into her house and sat her down on the couch. She gave her best friend a mug of coffee and listened as Gabi explained what happened.
"Oh, Gabi…" soothed Taylor, as she rubbed her best friend's back as she cried. "When are you going to move on from him? He's gone and you're better off without him. You deserve so much more."
"I…I just can't," sobbed Gabriella. "It would just feel so wrong, to be with anyone else."
"How do you know?" questioned Taylor. "You've never even tried. Tell you what; do you think Danny and Di-Di are responsible enough to babysit the twins?"
Gabriella stops crying and looks at Taylor confused. But she nods anyway.
"Then, I will call Sharpay, Kelsi & Martha and we'll hit the party circuit tonight," explained Taylor. "We are going to find a man for everyone of us. Except for Sharpay 'cause she's already got Drew, and no arguments, ok? It's about time you moved on."
Gabriella nods as Taylor wipes her tears away. She sees the pain she causes her friends to share with her but she's glad to have them. They are the people, as well as her mom, that kept her going in life. They made her realise that a few minutes with the people you love were all she needed.
Taylor hated Troy Bolton for doing this to her best friend and she knew that Sharpay, Kelsi and Martha felt the same way. She was lucky; she was able to move on with her life after Chad. She needed to move forward for her twins, but with Gabi was a different story. Sure, she was highly successful and had kids that would love her and appreciate her until the day they die, but she carried the pain of losing Troy everywhere she went. There wasn't a hope of her escaping it, nor did she want to. Taylor always saw it in Gabriella's eyes; hope that Troy would come back to her one day so they could live happily ever after. But Taylor doubted that Troy would have enough heart to do that.
After hours of talking and cheering Gabriella up, Gabi finally left to film her new music video, which she was filming with Sharpay. Taylor finally settled down to read a book before she had to leave to pick up the twins.
Sharpay's Story:
Sharpay sat in her dressing room as she went through wardrobe and make-up. Suddenly, Gabriella burst into the room.
"Where have you been? Punctual is Professional, Montez," lectured Sharpay.
Gabriella smiles as Sharpay reminds her what a perfectionist her bestie is. "I was at Tay's house."
Sharpay looks at Gabriella intensely. "Can you give us a moment? I'll do her make-up," Sharpay asks. "What's wrong, Gabs?"
Gabi breathes in deeply. "Nothing. We should get ready."
Sharpay agrees and they leave for the set 15 minutes later. 3 hours later, the friends leave the set happy and refreshed.
"OMG! That was so fun!" laughed Sharpay.
"I know!" agreed Gabriella. "Oh, and you have a bit of cookie dough in your hair…"
"What? Where?" fretted Sharpay.
Gabriella laughs. "I'm kidding! Oh, and we have to change into our party clothes and head to Tay's with Martha and Kels."
"Why?" questioned Sharpay.
"Tay thinks I should start partying it up and find myself a man," explained Gabi.
"About time!" exclaimed Sharpay.
Before another word could be said, Sharpay has whipped out her cell phone and was texting Taylor, Kelsi and Martha telling them to meet her at her house. When Sharpay put her phone away, she grabbed Gabriella's hand.
"Let's Go!" exclaims Sharpay excitedly.
Sharpay hurriedly drags Gabriella into her limo and drives her to the building where she lives. The both rush into the lobby, into the elevator and out into Gabi's penthouse. Sharpay starts tearing apart Gabi's wardrobe.
"Do we want to know what's going on?" asked Danny.
"We are going to take Gabi out partying and, hopefully, get her a boyfriend. Ah-ha! I found it. You'll be wearing this top, black skinny-leg jeans, your studded Jimmy Choos, you'll have your hair down, red nails and clear lip-gloss. Now, where's your make-up bag?" Sharpay exclaimed.
"I don't know, and you two are babysitting the twins," Gabriella informed.
"Oh, I give up! You're using mine," sighed Sharpay.
"Great, we'll just get our stuff and we'll wait in the limo," Di-Di told. "Come on, Danny,"
Half an Hour Later…
"Gabi, you look great!" Martha exclaimed, while everyone nodded in agreement.
"Thanks, guys. You all look amazing," thanked Gabi.
"Okay, well, we're 2 hours late so that is enough of an entrance," Sharpay phrased.
"Sure, let's go…" Gabi finalized.
