Disclaimer: I do not own HSM, any of its characters, or any songs I use in the story.
Ryan sat in the kitchen with a frown on his face. Something was bothering Sharpay and he didn't know what it was. She had come home from practice and locked herself in her room, blaring Celine Dion through the whole house. He sighed. Maybe she was just in a Celine Dion mood. Yeah, that has to be it. He hopped off the stool and started to head to the den to practice a few dances for the musical, but he stopped dead in his tracks as soon as he heard the first notes of "Everybody Hurts" by REM. He knew this could not be good.
He knocked on her door, but there was no answer. He tried again, but she still ignored him.
"Sharpay, open this door right now!" He slammed his fist against the door again but she still didn't answer. "Sharpay, if you don't open this door right now, I'm going to tell dad that you were the one who wrecked his new BMW!" He gave a victorious grin as the door flew open, but his smile dropped immediately when he saw his sister. She was dressed in pajamas with her hair a mess and her make-up smeared. He ran to her side.
"Shar, what happened? Why are you crying? You never cry. Should I call Troy? Maybe he could…"
"Don't you dare call that jerk! I don't ever want to see him again!" Ryan stared at her, confused. Troy was her best friend. I mean, sure they hadn't been spending a lot of time together lately, but he didn't think anything was wrong.
"Shar, why don't you want to see Troy? What happened?" Sharpay looked up at her brother. He looked so concerned and she knew she should tell him the truth. Hell, she should have told him sooner.
"Troy and I aren't friends anymore because I'm in love with him and he's in love with that bitch Gabriella and I don't want to see them together anymore because it hurts too much." She took a deep breath. "There. There's your TV guide version of the whole thing." She threw herself face down on the bed as she once again dissolved into tears. Ryan was at a complete loss at to what to say to her. On top of that, he couldn't believe that he had missed all the signs that she was in love with Troy. They were twins. Shouldn't he have known?
"I'm so sorry, Sharpay. He's crazy not to pick you. You are so much better than that Gabriella girl. He's a fool for not seeing it." She smiled half heartily at her brother's attempt to cheer her up. She knew he was trying, but it honestly didn't make her feel any better.
"Thanks for trying Ry, but I really want to be left alone."
Right then the doorbell rang and Ryan ran down the stairs to answer it. He swung open the door and there stood Troy Bolton, the guy who had made his sister cry. He attempted to slam the door shut in his face, but Troy pushed his foot in the way. He was guessing that Sharpay had told Ryan what happened.
"Look Ryan, I just need to talk to her." Ryan stood in front of Troy with his arms crossed.
"No, not gonna happen. You've done enough talking to her for one day, or for a whole lifetime in fact. She doesn't want to see you." Troy ran his hand through his hair.
"Look, I didn't mean to upset her. I just…"
"Upset her?! You think you only upset her. Never in our whole lives has Sharpay cried as much as she has today because of you. My sister is a complete mess because you're too stupid to see how wonderful she is. So just go back to your girlfriend and leave my sister alone!" He shoved Troy as hard as he could and slammed the door shut.
Ryan thought about going to check on Sharpay, but she said she wanted to be left alone and he didn't want to upset her.
Sharpay sat curled up on her bed. She had heard everything that had gone on between Ryan and Troy. She would have to remember to thank her brother for sticking up for her. She was kind of surprised. Normally he just followed her around and did what she told him, but he really went out on a limb for her today.
She was about to lay down for a nap when she heard a tapping on her patio door. She opened the blinds and there was Troy. New tears welled up in her eyes. Why wouldn't he just go away?
"Shar, please open the door. Just give me two minutes and I'll leave." He looked at her pleadingly and she rolled her eyes as she unlocked the door.
"What do you want Bolton?" He flinched at her cold tone.
"I just wanted to say that I was sorry. Shar, I never wanted to hurt you. You're my best friend. I just want this to be okay." She let out a sad laugh.
"Don't you get it, Troy? We'll never be okay again. I'm in love with you and you're in love with someone else. That kind of situation never turns out okay in the end. That's just how it is. So please just leave me alone. If I really am your best friend, then you'll respect my wishes. Don't call me, don't come over, and don't even talk to me unless it has to do with the musical. And when school is over, just let me go my own way and don't try to follow me or mend our friendship." She smiled at him sadly. He tried to grab her hand, but she flinched away.
"Please, Shar. We can make this work. I don't want to lose you. You're too important to me." She closed her eyes, trying to muster her last ounce of strength. She walked over to the patio door and opened it.
"Your two minutes are up. You need to go."
"But Shar…"
"Now!" He sighed, defeated. His dad was right. Maybe the only thing that could heal this was time. He just hoped he didn't have to wait too long.
Please R&R!