Thanks again for the wonderful reviews ;p And as to answer you, my dear friend, AK-Tutti, I did write the song myself. It's not one of my best songs so far, but I thought it fit Sharpay nicely. Anyway, just 'cause you asked… I'm moving on with the story now…
Disclaimer; I don't own HSM. But I dream every night that I do, who wouldn't, if they could catch a glimpse of Zac Efron in real person?
When Will They See?
Chapter 3.
--
Maybe it's a fairy tale,
but I believe in happily ever after.
--
That week at school, gossip got around.
Ryan and Sharpay were suddenly hating each other, more than anyone else in the entire world. Sharpay's evil glances were specially saved for her brother, who was walking down the halls, arm in arm with Kelsi.
Now the other guys at least knew whom of the Drama Club members it was that Kelsi had been seeing.
No-one had expected it to be Ryan, at least of all Sharpay.
If she had been bossing Kelsi around before, ordering her to do stuff, it was nothing of what she was doing to her now. It was ALL the time.
She asked her to pick up her lunch when she walked past her table, and Kelsi did it, because even though she'd grown a lot since the last musical, she was still terrified by Sharpay.
As a lot of the other members of the Drama Club. They were scared of her, but they still loved her. Looked up to her.
Sharpay went around the school, pretending that nothing had happened, that it didn't bother her that her brother was hanging out with Kelsi now, instead of her.
Everybody thought she was just being herself, and totally didn't care, but Troy realized that there was probably more to it than that. He still wondered what their fight was about, and what it was that Sharpay had wanted to do, that Ryan didn't want her to.
It was getting annoying, he couldn't get it out of his head. It had taken over his mind.
He was positive.
He waited till it became Monday again, because then he knew that Sharpay was in the auditorium, and he could listen to her. Her song was on his mind, and he was being careful not to hum it, since he knew it would cause glances from Chad and Gabriella. It wasn't exactly the music he was listening to by himself, so how would he explain it?
Gabriella was getting seriously worried about Troy.
He was just not himself.
He was distant. He spaced out all the time, and he didn't hear her until she spoke his name for the hundredth time.
Something was really wrong.
Basketball practise was not going well for Troy either.
He had promised his dad to give all he got until the musical. He had a point to prove. But that point just wasn't getting across. He couldn't even concentrate on the game that he loved so much.
He was memorized by Sharpay's voice and her song.
He couldn't get it out of his mind.
And it didn't help that he wanted to talk to her. To get to know the real her, as she sang herself. She even wished for people to get to know the real her. He just couldn't understand why she didn't show it, then? Was the Sharpay they saw at school, not the Sharpay there was at home?
He wanted to know!
And that was why, he once again found himself hidden behind a curtain in the auditorium the following Monday, waiting for Sharpay's arrival.
He was humming her song again.
"My heart is in progress. Growing so quick. I wonder when someone notices, The real me?…"
He stopped when he heard the door go. He peeked through the curtains and saw Sharpay storming in, throwing her purse and jacket on the floor. She stomped with her foot, obviously trying to calm herself.
It didn't work very well.
He watched her shake her head and take off her high heels. She plumped them next to her jacket on the floor, and grabbed her notebook from her purse.
It was pink with fur, and Troy couldn't help but chuckle quietly to himself. It was so Sharpay.
She also grabbed the same pen she'd used when she wrote her and Ryan's names at the audition list, and took both things with her to the piano.
She sat down, flopped her hair behind her shoulders, and opened the notebook.
"Hmm, hmm…" she mumbled, "Maybe I could go with a little higher key on that one…" she paused, and pressed a few keys at the piano, "Nah.." she shrugged her shoulders, "Maybe I should just go on and try the new one…" she turned a few pages until she found the right one, and then she sat up straight and pressed a few keys again. She nodded for herself and begun…
"The end?
Is this the end?
I think it is, but I am not sure?"
She paused and looked at the notebook, "Hmmf, that doesn't sound very good…" she mumbled, "I should just throw it out!"
Troy wanted to yell at her. To scream no! It sounded very good, and he wanted to hear the rest of the song. She couldn't throw it out.
"On the other hand…" she whispered to herself, "If I worked on it, it could probably be my best work yet. I should try the second chorus…
Sorry?
I'm so sorry
But in fact, it's you that should be."
She sang it without the piano, and Troy really, really adored her voice.
"But that's not the truth." She whispered, looking at the lines, "It was my fault! It wasn't yours!" she threw her arms in the air, "Stupid Ryan! You're such an idiot sometimes! Why don't you get it!?"
She stood up and jumped around on the floor, getting her anger out.
Troy was mesmerized by her. He couldn't believe that it was Sharpay; jumping around, screaming, crying.
That was so not Sharpay.
She continued to scream her heart out, throwing curses here and there, but Troy couldn't hear exactly what she was saying. Her voice was too muffled with cries. When she was tired out, she threw herself in one of the comfy chairs, which was normally meant for the audience. She sat down and pulled her legs up under herself. She lay her head, rested it on her knees, and then she cried more. But this time it was small, quiet sobs like the Mondays before. She had probably worn herself out 10 minutes ago with her screaming session.
Troy got tears in his eyes.
She looked so sad. It was heartbreaking.
When she finally gathered her things together and left, it didn't take Troy many moments to follow out the door. His parents were probably wondering where he was.
--
During dinner, Troy was awfully quiet, and Mrs. Bolton were getting really worried. She, too, had noticed his change, and found it frightening. Her husband had told her that Troy couldn't even focus on Basketball now, and she had no idea what to do.
He was digging his food, sitting in his own thoughts, so she decided to talk to him.
"Troy?"
There was no response, so she quickly glanced at her husband.
"Troy?" he tried.
Troy didn't notice how both his parents was looking at him.
"TROY!?" they both exclaimed.
He slowly looked up at them, "What?"
"Are you okay?" his mom asked, taking his hand from across the table, "Because if something is bothering you, you should tell us. Is it something with Gabby? Have you broken up? Is it school, what? Chad? You need to talk to us, Troy, because, we care about you. We want to know what's going on in your life, we only want you good. So, tell us, ple-"
"Dad, what do you know about the Evans'?" Troy asked. He didn't even realize that he'd just cut his mothers sentence, and that the question was weird for his parents.
"I beg your pardon?"
"The Evans family." Troy said, "What do you know about them?"
"The Evans from right down the street?" Coach Bolton questioned.
"Yeah…" Troy trailed off, "I think the live right down the street?"
"The family with the twins?" his mother asked.
Troy nodded eagerly, "Yes, them!"
"Why do you wanna know about them?" his dad asked.
"Well…" Troy paused, "I'm doing a history project with Sharpay, and she wont really talk about herself." He made up, "And I'm wondering… about her family."
"Uh…" Mrs. Bolton looked into the table, "We knew them quite well when you were younger. Their mother was my best friend."
"Oh… Was?"
"Hmm, she died, son." Coach Bolton said.
"She died?" Troy exclaimed, not really believing he never knew that, "Ryan and Sharpay doesn't have a mom?"
"No," Mrs. Bolton said, "She was in a horrible car crash. The girl was with her too. Mrs. Evans died on instant, and Sharpay barely survived. But she managed to get out of the coma. She's a fighter."
"Oh my God…" Troy couldn't believe it. "So, they live only with their father?"
"Yeah." Coach Bolton said, "He works at the lawyers office. He's really successful. Not home a lot."
"I can't believe I never knew that. It must be really awful." Troy mumbled, "But they always seem so happy."
"It's a family thing." Mrs. Bolton said, "Their mom, Charlotte, was always happy too. Always, no matter what happened. It's weird, since her baby sister was the complete opposite. She would act happy, and then go home and cry too."
"They have an aunt? You know her too?"
"I did know her." Mrs. Bolton said, "She died a long time ago. In a car crash too. It's been really awful for their family."
"When did she die?" Coach Bolton asked his wife, interested.
"Don't you remember?" she questioned, "A few days after Charlotte gave birth to Ryan and Sharpay. I think it was only two days. Like things weren't hard enough on her."
"Oh." Coach Bolton remembered, "Weren't the twins born way too early? They were in incubator? Right?"
"They were like this close to lose them." Mrs. Bolton said, showing Troy her fingers, which were one centimetre apart from each other.
Troy was stunned. He had no idea how much Sharpay had been through. It really worried him that no-one knew that stuff about her. Hadn't anyone taken the time to know her? Maybe there was actually a reason to why she was so mean and manipulating?
"How old were they when their mom died?" he asked.
"I think they were 7 years old. Or something." Mrs. Bolton said, "It surprises me that you can't remember. You were at the funeral. You and Sharpay were like, the best friends. You ran around and played football and other sports. Ryan would always watch."
"Really? Were we together a lot?"
"Yes," she continued, "I think I have some pictures of you three. Wait a minute." She stood up, and went into the bedroom. Five minutes later she came back with a huge book filled with pictures. She sat by the table and opened it up. "Oh, look!" she exclaimed, "It's you and Sharpay playing basket. See?"
Troy pulled the book towards himself and looked at the pictures. He was around 6 years old. He was wearing a green t-shirt, and blue shorts. Right next to him, with a ball, was Sharpay. She had her hair in braids, and was smiling a huge smile. Her clothes was pink, yeah well… some things never change.
"Wow…" he whispered.
"Surprised?" Coach Bolton questioned.
"Yeah." Troy said, "Really, really surprised. I never remembered."
"Haven't Sharpay told you about this?"
"No, she probably doesn't remember too." Troy just said. He flipped a page, "I can't believe it."
"We always figured the three of you would grow up and be friends forever." Mrs. Bolton said, "Charlotte and I even made jokes about you and Sharpay getting married before she died. You know, you wouldn't find many girls that much into basketball."
"She really did sports?" Troy asked, ignoring the comment about marriage.
"Yeah…" Mrs. Bolton said, "You guys got along so great."
"So why did we stop hanging out?"
"After Charlotte died, their father, Paul, didn't have time to take them anywhere. And we didn't have that much in common with him. We got together in the past because Charlotte and I were friends. Sharpay would come over eventually after the funeral, but that slowly faded off. She was so crushed. She was really attached to her mother."
Troy smiled at the picture he was looking at. Him, Sharpay and Ryan at Halloween. He was a pumpkin. Ryan was a ghost, and Sharpay was a witch. He actually remembered some stuff now when he saw the pictures.
It occurred to him, how weird it was that he had never seen pictures with Sharpay and Ryan on before. He had seen other pictures of his childhood. He looked at his mom, "How come I haven't seen these pictures before?"
"I made a special book with all the pictures of them in, after Charlotte died." Mrs. Bolton said, "I wanted to keep it special."
Troy nodded, "Some of these are really great…"
"Feel free to take some." Mrs. Bolton said, standing up. "I hardly look at them anymore. If you want some, you should take them and put them in your room. Maybe you could even show Sharpay and Ryan some of them…?"
Troy nodded again, and took out the Halloween picture, "Yeah…" he said, "I'm just gonna take a few."
He had no idea why it meant so much to him. He didn't understand why some old pictures of him and two people he didn't even talk to anymore, could be so important to him.
They just were.
--
Sharpay stepped out of the shower, silently humming one of her favourite songs. She dried herself off, and took on her pink robe. After brushing her hair, she tied it into a bun, and went into her room.
She brushed her fingers on the frame beside her bed, and sat down in front of the computer.
She could search the net to find some more stuff about the Jews. She really wanted to make a good project, even though she was with Troy Bolton.
She looked at the clock and realized, it was 11:30.
Her dad wasn't even home yet.
Heey guys. Thanks for reading the third part of my story. It's really stupid, isn't it?, I'm writing this now, where I should be writing on my book report. But who wants to write some stuff about a really old, ugly man, when you can write about your favourite movie? (I'm just asking ;p) Anyway. The next chapter should be here soon, and remember to leave me a review. But I don't even have to ask, you always do that. I love that :p See I should stop rambling, who's interested anyway? Sorry, tootles ;p
- Stessa.