Title: Wildcats in Tights

Summary: It's New Year's Eve and the Wildcats have been roped in to performing for a charity talent show at Lava Springs. Meanwhile, all Troy wants is some alone time with Gabi on the one-year anniversary of their first meeting…

Rating: T

Pairings: Troyella, with background Chaylor, Zekepay and Jelsi

Disclaimer: High School Musical and all of its characters belong to Disney. I'm just borrowing them for a while.

A/N: Yay, new chapter! I hope this one is a worthy follow-up to the last one, since so many of you liked it...and once again, thanks to all the reviewers!

Oh, and I have an announcement to make. The same two girls who were lucky enough to snap pics of Zac on the set of Seventeen for our website, have scored tickets to sit in the red carpet bleachers at the 14th Annual Screen Actor's Guild Awards, which Zac is scheduled to be a presenter at. We'll be posting live updates from the red carpet, so make sure you check out our website on January 27, the link is in my profile.

Ok, let's get on with the hilarity! (or at least, I hope it's hilarity...but i'll settle for a slight tickling of the funny bone.)

Dedication: For Marian, who is currently in hospital after having surgery to remove cancerous tumours. I hope you're able to read this in the short period you're allowed on your laptop, and I tried to make it extra funny just for you!


Chapter 6: Showtime!

"…a complete and utter lack of respect for others. I know you are not currently under my employ, but you are not guests and if we let everyone just do as they please, we'd have teenagers...fornicating all over the place!! And just what were you thinking…"

Fulton's voice droned on and on in a seemingly never-ending tirade which had all but become a buzz in the back of Troy's mind. Shifting uncomfortably on the balls of his feet, he snuck a glance at the girl beside him. Gabriella's head was bowed, her curly locks forming a screen through which you could just see the pink tinge of embarrassment staining her cheeks. Instinctively sensing his gaze upon her, she looked up and caught his eyes. He sent her what he hoped was a reassuring smile, prompting her to smile back, her eyes regaining some of the sparkle that he loved so much.

"And you're not even listening to me, are you? Fine, you can go, but if I catch you two again involved in gross public displays of your hormones, then I will have to ask you to leave, talent show or no talent show, capiche?"

Troy and Gabriella jumped guiltily and snapped their heads back to look at Fulton, who was staring them down with a slight hint of amusement shining through his spectacles. They both nodded their heads vigorously in response before turning on their heels and escaping out the door. They walked in hurried silence til they emerged from the main building out into the fading light of dusk, their eyes blinking at the sudden change in ambient light.

"Well, that was…"

"Awkward, embarrassing, Oh-My-God-I-can-never-look-him-in-the-eye-again-and-we-almost-gave-that-little-girl-an-early-crash-course-in-sex-education bad?"

Gabriella finished off Troy's trailing sentence, as he stuck his hands in his pockets in an attempt to ward off the thoughts currently swirling in his brain…

Damn it, if she isn't gorgeous when she's slightly flushed like that, maybe if I just lead her over to a bunker like I thought this morning, surely no-one could find us there…

Oh, what in the hell are you thinking Bolton? You just got caught feeling her up by your former employer and a minor and still all you can think about is how soft her skin is, how she tastes, how she makes that little half moan/half whimper when you kiss that exact spot on her neck…

"I'm up here Wildcat."

Gabriella's voice broke through Troy's out of control thoughts, as he realised he'd been staring at her chest throughout his entire internal argument. He raised his head to meet her eyes, gleaming knowingly, matched by the smirk on her face. Feeling embarrassed for a second, he quickly chucked any previous reservations out the window as he retracted his hands from his pockets and pulled her close.

"I know…but can I help it if the view slightly south of your face is just so mesmerising," Troy replied, shooting a prolonged glance at her breasts to emphasise his statement.

"You're incorrigible Troy! How can you even think about that after what just happened?" Gabriella exclaimed, slightly pushing against his chest to increase the distance between them.

"Ummm, I'm a guy?" he offered weakly in response, before pulling her back in close, which was, to be fair, an action Gabriella was not protesting against with any great zeal.

Stilling in his embrace for a moment, Gabriella seemed to be contemplating something. Worried that he may have offended her in some way, he moved to pull back but was stopped as she looped her hands around his neck.

"Yes you are Troy Bolton, and that is one of the things I love about you," she whispered, before closing the gap between their lips and kissing him firmly.

Pulling her hips even closer to his, he deepened the kiss, completely ignoring the little voice in the back of his head providing a running internal dialogue that went something like: What the hell are you doing? You're only 10 feet away from the door! If you get caught, Fulton will kick you out then you'll have one pissed off Sharpay on your hands because you ruined her show! And Fulton will call your parents and you'll have to explain to Dad what you were doing half-naked in a golf cart with your equally undressed girlfriend! And once again to reiterate, Sharpay will…

"Oh God, you two are still going at it?! Just when did the golden boy and the innocent geek become such nymphomaniacs?!"

screech at us so loud our ear-drums almost burst.

Gabriella had jerked back at the intrusion, turning to face the gaggle of familiar faces staring at them unabashedly.

Straightening his shirt, Troy shot a glare in Sharpay's direction, which she replied to with a simple raise of her eyebrow as if to say 'Well, I'm right aren't I?'

"Congrats dude, getting to second base in the storage shed? That's one for the record books," Chad blurted out, causing Taylor to whack him in the arm.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Being a hormone-driven idiot," she replied matter-of-factly, crossing her arms.

"Wait…you already know about us, uh, getting caught?" Gabriella asked, the red stain of embarrassment once again gracing her features.

"Charles, you remember Charles, the valet? Anyway, Charles was walking past the shed when Mrs Cranston stormed out with her daughter muttering something about inappropriate sexual displays in public and that in her day, getting to second base required being engaged at least, blah, blah, blah…" Sharpay explained, before Kelsi continued,

"Then Charles saw the two of you following Fulton out of the shed and put two and two together. So he went and told Aimee, the massage therapist, who was walking past…"

"Who proceeded to tell Vince from maintenance…" Martha chimed in, before looking over at Zeke,

"Who told Lenny the caterer…"

"Who then told Sarah the receptionist…" Jason added on,

"Who finally told Brad, the drummer for the band, who relayed it when he came to tell us that Marian the seamstress needed us back in the dressing rooms for last minute costume alterations," Ryan finished with a flourish.

By the end of their friends' little tale, Troy and Gabriella had flushed bright red with the knowledge that pretty much the entire Lava Springs staff knew about the incident.

"Alright, as much fun as embarrassing these two is, we'd better get a move on, the show starts in an hour."

Ever the pragmatist, Taylor started to usher everyone towards the performing area. Exchanging a quick glance, Troy and Gabriella reluctantly followed their friends, all of them walking in silence til…

"So, what advice can you give me on successfully pulling off golf cart sex?"

"Chad!"

"What, it was just a question!"


Troy stared grumpily in the mirror, as he readjusted his cap to sit slightly to one side on his head. He'd only been in this costume again for 5 minutes and already the skin-tight lycra was making his legs sweat, the tunic was itchy and the cap just would not stay where it was supposed to. All in all, he was quickly returning to his initial reservations about this day, and all thanks to this laughter-inducing apparel.

"Need some help there Wildcat?"

Gabriella's head appeared behind his in the mirror, as her petite hands made short work of settling the cap in its proper position. Pressing a gentle kiss to his neck, she wound her arms around his shoulders, bringing her body flush against his. The low-cut nature of her dress meant that the tops her breasts were pressed deliciously close to Troy's back, the material of the skirt brushing lightly against his legs.

"As a matter of fact I do…see I have this problem. My girlfriend has been in the same room as me for almost a minute and I haven't been able to kiss her yet," Troy explained in mock seriousness.

"Hmmm, that is quite the problem, isn't it? Let's see if I can't help you to rectify this situation," Gabriella responded thoughtfully, moving so she was between Troy and the mirror. Standing on her tip-toes, she lightly brushed his lips with hers, before bounding away cheekily.

"Hey, what do you call that?!" Troy said in disappointment.

"You never specified how long or deep the kiss had to be," she said slyly, "Besides, I can't ruin this make-up or crinkle this dress, and I know that's what'll happen if I let you get your hands on me Bolton."

Troy's semi-pleading reply was cut off as a loud yell of pain emanated from the dressing room next door. Heading over to investigate, Troy and Gabriella were welcomed by the sight of Ryan lying on the floor, cradling his knee in agony as Chad hovering guiltily next to him, a wooden staff hanging limply in his grip.

"I'm so sorry man, I didn't even see you there!" he exclaimed, helping Ryan into a sitting position.

"What happened?" Troy asked.

"Chad was goofing off with that staff, swinging it around and stuff and he accidentally whacked Ryan in the knee," Zeke explained.

"See, this is what happens when you give boys blunt objects, they turn into idiotic caveman," Taylor said exasperatedly as Jason helped Chad pull Ryan standing and Sharpay stalked over to her brother, half-worried/half-annoyed.

"You can't be hurt! You have to be in this act, since I'm not in it, they need at least one seasoned performer on stage with them," she said anxiously.

"Gee, thanks sis, I'm fine, thanks for asking," Ryan commented sarcastically, before testing his knee out gingerly.

"I think I'll be ok to dance some things, but that ending leap will have to go, I don't think my knee would hold up at the moment."

"But that leap is crucial! It's at the high point of the song, we can't leave it out!" Sharpay cried.

Kelsi whispered something to Martha, who got an evil grin on her face.

"I have an idea…since Chad's the reason Ryan won't be able to perform the routine properly, he can do the leap in Ryan's place," she said, grinning at a horrified Chad.

"Uh, no way! I agreed to be in this, to sing and do a little bit dancing, to even wear these stupid costumes, but there is no way in hell I'm gonna do that ballet crap Evans does, I'd rather strip naked and streak at a Knights basketball match!"

Chad crossed his arms in defiance, daring them to contradict him, but under the weight of glaring stares from 5 sets of female eyes, his bravado faltered, his arms dropping down to his sides.

Looking in askance from face-to-face, Chad saw no sympathy and understanding, only indifference from the girls and amusement from the guys. Dropping his head for a moment and letting out a sigh, he looked up again.

"I'm going to do the leap, aren't I?" he asked defeated.

"You better believe it," Taylor answered sternly.

"Who's whipped now?" Troy teased, earning him a dirty look from his best friend.

At that moment, a stagehand entered the room.

"Miss Evans, the show's about to start, it's time for your opening speech…oh, and the rest of you are on in 20 minutes."

Flipping her hair behind her dramatically, Sharpay followed the stagehand back out the door, but not before calling over her shoulder,

"Make sure Chad knows that move back-to-front and inside-out, you've got 20 minutes to perfect it."

Groaning, Chad turned to Ryan for instructions as the other Wildcats returned to their previous tasks, fixing hair, adding finishing touches to costumes and quietly reciting their lines. Laughing as Chad demonstrated his limited leaping skills, Troy turned to check his appearance once more in the mirror, letting out a grunt of frustration as his cap had once again shifted from its rightful place.

Well, I guess its showtime…mortal embarrassment here I come.