Sharpay couldn't remember going to bed, but she knew she must have made it there herself when she woke the next morning, there was no chance that her 89 pound mother, also known as anorexic Annie, would have been able to bring her inside. Sharpay loved her mother to pieces, and they found that they had a closer relationship than many mothers and daughter, but her desire to be stick thin, perfect did Sharpay's head in.

She decided that it was time. Time to look in the mirror. Face her reflection for the first time since the... Well just since. She swept the cloth that covered the full length mirror aside, and studied the unfamiliar girl standing there. She didn't look physically that different. They could definitely be sisters. Well, cousins. But this cousin was the one with the hard life. The one who was a bit downtrodden. This girls eyes had no sparkle, no depth. Just a shallow pool of hazel. No happiness, warmth, just a cold gleam. Underneath the eyes were bags. Huge bags. Sharpay wondered if that was where everything inside her was being stored. All the tears, all the screams, all the desperate desires to smash everything in her room. How was it fair that her insignificant possessions, clothes, jewellery, make up, how was it possibly fair that all this, this crap was fine, perfect in fact, whereas the one thing that she wanted, no, needed in tact wasn't? It was like losing a tooth, the process of losing a tooth. She tooth was just hanging on. By a thread of gum. And two things could happen. It could miraculously fall into place, and everything would be fine. She would have her winning smile, the right combination of teeth. Or she could lose it. Forever. There would be a gap in her perfect smile. Except if she lost this, it was irreplaceable. There would be no cosmetic surgeon to fill the gap. There would be no tooth fairy waiting to leave a reward under her pillow. There would be... nothing. The thought scared her. It chilled her to the bone. But then the gap in the smile wouldn't matter. At all. Because this girl, this pale, thin, frightened girl had no smile. She just had a plain shadowy face. There was one distinctive feature though. Hidden. Just at her hairline, sat a gash, 4 inches long. It was just healing, and it was sure to leave a scar.

Sharpay couldn't stand to look at herself like this anymore. It ashamed her. After being told to be so strong so many times, it ashamed her that she wasn't. She really wasn't. She was so weak, crumbling apart in front of her own eyes. She had to make herself strong. The first step, Sharpay decided, was to have a full say at East High. She got ready much the same way as she did yesterday, but in her bag this time, was her secret weapon.

Pulling up, yet again, at the school, she drew the weapon, poised ready to use it. Her iPod. Sticking the buds right in her ear, and turning up Head Automatica as loud as they were willing to go. And she was ready. She marched up the steps to East High, deftly ignoring any catcalls and insults. It was easy, she didn't hear them in the first place. Neither did she hear Troy calling her name. And Troy didn't see the ear buds, so of course thought that Sharpay was just ignoring him.

In all her lessons Sharpay sat at the front, and looked straight ahead. She did her work, and tried to avoid drawing attention to herself. Little did she know that by being so unlike her normal self, she was drawing more attention than before. During the breaks between lessons, she kept the headphones jammed in. During lunch she avoided the cafeteria, choosing to eat in her dressing room behind the auditorium. Luckily she had her free period last thing on a Tuesday, so she could go and do whatever she liked. And what she liked to do was do go make a few visits.

Troy, however had no hope of a peaceful day. Upon reaching his locker, after wild Sharpay chase, he met a very baffled Chad. And a very pissed Gabriella. Chad was baffled for many reasons. One reason was that he was Chad. He was also wondering why the captain of their basketball team seemed so off yesterday. And why his best friend, who was going out with another one of his best friends, was chasing the girl no one liked. At all. He couldn't understand any of this. But his thoughts would have to wait. There was someone who needed to talk to Troy more than anyone.

Gabriella was mighty pissed off. As Gabriella usually was with Troy. For various reasons. But today it was because of his ignoring of her yesterday. And she also had an issue with the chasing of Sharpay.

"You're meant to be MY boyfriend. You're also meant to be chasing ME, not her! Anyway what would you want to do with some washed up pop star wannabe who looks like she's been in the tumble dryer?" This was it. This had really hit Troy's last nerve.

"Gabriella, will you just shut up?" She looked shocked. She launched into a tirade of threats, names, and swear words. And Troy ignored it, and began walking away from her.

"Troy Bolton! If you walk away from me right now, we are over. Properly. For good!"And yet Tory still walked away, until the screams became a memory. A fond memory.

But Troy's good day wasn't set to last. Yet again Sharpay downright ignored him, and his friends spent all day moaning at him about Gabriella. Were they getting back together, what was going on, why did he finish with her. To be honest, it was absolutely none of their business. He spent lunchtime trying to find Sharpay, looking all over for her. Her Pink Mustang was still in the parking lot, so she must have still been in school. But he had no idea where. He ended up sitting on the edge of the stage in the auditorium, unaware that she was sitting just a few meters from him.

Yet again basketball practise was terrible. Sharpay Evans was filling his head. Everywhere he looked, all he could see was her. It was messing him up badly. So bad in fact that he fell, for the first time in his basketball playing life. He jumped up to make a basket, and landed awkwardly on his ankle. His dad came rushing over, and checked the damage. In 2 minutes, the ankle had swollen to twice its normal size, and it the pain was excruciating. His Father and Chad helped him hobble to Chad's car, who took him to the hospital. Jack Bolton had to stay behind to lock up the gym and finish practise. When the boys made it to Albuquerque General, Troy sat in the seat of Chad's truck, whilst the afro haired man himself went to fetch Troy a wheelchair. Whilst he waited, he looked around at all the different people coming and going through the hospital doors, from all walks of life, but one girl caught her eye. One petite blonde crying in the arms of her even more petite mother, with the sound of one whose life was being ripped apart. Troy gasped as realised who it was.

"Sharpay." The words crept from his mouth in a whisper so quiet that it was a minute before he realised he'd let them.