"Hi I'm Sharpay Evans, It's my first day here, I believe I'm working for Jenny Green" Sharpay simply smiled, she needed to get to work and focus on the project, all night long her mind had been wondering over the subject that is Troy Bolton.
"Of course, I'll take you there myself" a small brunette came from behind the desk, it became obvious that she was at least 5 months pregnant. The woman strutted down the corridor holding on to her belly, she turned to Sharpay. "I'm Hayley by the way and this is my bouncing boy" she smiled down at her belly and caressed it adoringly.
"It's a pleasure to meet you and congratulations" they soon arrived at the main office, where Hayley left her to face her new boss alone.
Sharpay straightened up her clothes before knocking twice on the wooden door. This was it, the start of her new life, she was determined to let nothing stop her, not even her old painful memories.
"Ahh Miss Evans, my pleasure to meet you, I'm Jenny Green, the chief executive of City-Self Magazine." A middle-aged woman answered the door and paced quickly back to her desk. She wore a lime green knee length cocktail dress, matching shoes and a perfectly cut brunette bob. Her lipstick was ruby red and her glasses hung at the tip of her nose. She smiled in her words; this made Sharpay ease up a little.
"Nice to meet you too, so – what do you want me to do first?" Sharpay didn't know what to do with herself as she pondered out loud. She decided to sit in one of the cream leather chairs in front of her desk and noticed 3-family photos.
Her new boss scanned a few files in the cabinet next to the glass desk and watched Sharpay slowly. She could tell she was suffering some kind of pain as she watched her look deeply into the photos that stood at her desk. "The first one is my sisters and I that was taken when we were eleven years old" She snapped her files shut and sat behind her desk again. She cocked her head to the side, and watched Sharpay's emotion build. Sharpay reminded her of herself when she was young and vulnerable.
"Sharpay I'm going to cut you some slack, this is your first day and I'm guessing you are new in town but don't bring your problems to work. This is the place to earn money not to sit around a table and cry on endless tissues". Jenny watched Sharpay's reaction and then trying to bring her emotions together however much it pained her. From her own experience she could tell this was no ordinary homesickness, this was purely a case of a broken heart.
Jenny smiled and showed her pearl white teeth "Now on a higher note I think your first project will be right up your street from what I'm seeing today". Jenny placed the file she was scanning a few seconds ago in front of Sharpay. It was a green cover and contained a few blank sheets of A4 inside "Write me an article on hurt, due Friday to be posted on the next issue, make it real, show some emotion don't give me any collage crap, this is the real deal, the start of your life. Forget the jackass that made that pretty smile of yours fade – now go home, write this article and make me some money girl" She laughed and gestured to the door.
"Thank you Ms Green" Sharpay gathered her things and headed out towards the door.
"No thank you Miss Evans and please call me Jenny" She returned to typing on her computer as she was doing when Sharpay first walked through the door. She paused when she heard the door close; she looked at one of her sisters in the photo Sharpay was admiring only a few minutes ago then turned to the telephone. Jenny punched in a few numbers, numbers that had stayed on her mind for a few years now.
"Yes, hi I'm looking for Lucy Bolton?" She asked nervously.
"May I ask whose calling?"
"I'm Jenny Green, Lucy's sister." She let out a sigh, and had a minute to think of words to say to the sister she hadn't spoken to for twelve years.
There was a light cloud in the sky, and a small breeze in the air which carried the smell of freshly cut grass, the smell of spring. It was a perfect afternoon for some time to practice basketball. The court was his favourite place to be, nothing mattered on the court, he forgot everything when he was on the court, playing the game he loved and the game his father loved. All that mattered was getting the ball through the hoop over and over again.
Troy was in his element, in his zone, the place he was meant to be shooting hoops. He had once hoped to be a basketball super-star back in the days of East-High Albuquerque, everything was so simple then. Well it was before senior year, before the mistake, before the girl and before the pain. He still hopes for the basketball super-star, but for now he works in an office using art and design, photography and computer skills. This was his second dream, to work on his art, his art was his other element, he took all his feelings and let them out using a pencil and paper, he happened to be rather good at it.
The sun set over the city, the purple pink sky watched over the court which made Troy breathless. Only one other thing made Troy breathless, the sight of Sharpay Evans. It toyed on his mind how he wouldn't see Sharpay again, he came to the conclusion that the woman in the shop was just a look –a-like. He heard from a good source that is normally correct, his mom, that Sharpay was settling into a new job at the local paper. Something she had always wanted to do.
Troy and Sharpay looked into the starry sky from the garden swing, holding hands and cuddling, their usual Sunday night activity.
"Shar, where do you think we will be in 5 years time?" he look at her with such admiration, he knew he would never stop loving her.
"Well I hope to be working with a newspaper, doing what I love the most, writing stories. But I know I will be with you, and if I'm not I know I will always be here." She placed her hand over his beating heart. She looked confused. "Troy, are you feeling ok? Your hearts beating fast"
"That always happens when I am around you" he smiled into her eyes then softly kissed her lips
"AHHHHHHHH WHY CAN'T I GET YOU OUT OF MY HEAD!" Troy screamed and threw the basket ball as hard as he could against the wall. He startled a nearby flock of birds and then realised he was alone, not just in the park but in the world. His thoughts of anger were interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone.
"Yes?!?" Troy irritated by his past memories.
"Hello dear, its mom." She sounded gentle and wise, unlike a tense Troy
"Hi mom how can I help you?" Troy tried not to sound frustrated he didn't intend to worry his mother as he knew she didn't like him living out there all alone and stated more than once that he should come home and be looked after by his family,
"Well your Aunt Jenny rang me asking for a favour – and well she hoped that you would go see her about taking some photo's for the next issue of the magazine, I said I would ask you but..."
"Aunt Jenny? Haven't heard from her in a while but I don't know mom I'm awfully busy right no-" Troy didn't get the chance to finish his sentence.
"PLEASE" she paused, she almost sounded hurt. "I could really do with you to help me on this one"
"Alright, fine" Troy had never disappointed his mother before and nor was he going to start now. "Tell Aunt Jenny I'll stop by her office on Friday, where does she work anyway?"
"City-Self Magazine."
Hurt; By Sharpay Evans
Everybody has complications in their life, some bigger than others, but nobody's life is perfect. We are who we are because we were made that way. Unique. I f we were meant to be perfect then God would have made us that way. I have a question that is still un-answered.
Why do people change?
I understand that sometimes change is a good thing and people benefit from change, but other times when people change it hurts the people around them. They suffer in silence. All they have is memories, but even they change as u try to remember parts fade away. Tell me some good things about change. Right here right now this is what I am feeling and I know that somewhere out there somebody is feeling the same. With ink to paper I write this, I am lost looking to be found. I am a lucky girl, I know. There are so many people out in the world worse off than I am and I feel guilty to say that I am sad.
Somebody, a boy I fell in love with broke my heart, it's still waiting to be fixed and I feel he is the only one who can do that. Even after all this time.
I'm HURT; are you?