"Pick me, and only me, or get out of my house." she said, suprised at how firm she sounded, despite the fact that her insides were quaking. She wasn't going to let Troy walk away when the time came and cause her to cry. She was beating him to the punchline.

Troy stared dumbfounded at her for a few seconds, and then blinked heavily, shaking his head. "Sharpay, you knew what this was, I mean, I-I-I care about you, you know I do, but I just can't...I mean... Sharpay y-you're the one who...I mean this was an affair...Are you saying you want to end it?" he looked at her where she sat across the room on her white bedspread hoping that she'd only had a momentary lapse and would forget her previous statement.

Sharpay swallowed hard. He had yet to directly answer her question, but she realized with a horrifying sinking feeling that she had just gotten her answer. Sharpay had asked him to choose her over Gabriella, and Troy had replied, "Are you saying you want to end it?" What he was really saying when he asked this was that if she was going to make him choose, then he was going to choose to end things with her.

"I want to end the hiding. I don't want to end us." Sharpay said softly, "I want a relationship with you."

"We have a relationship." Troy argued.

"I want a steady, exclusive relationship." Sharpay said, looking him directly in the eyes, "I want to be the only one you kiss. I want to be the only one you want to kiss. And I want to be able to kiss you whenever I want, instead of running around secretly. I want you to call me for check-ins and I want you to tell me you love me. Not her." Sharpay chose not to say Gabriella's name, knowing it would hurt too much if Troy left in a second, knowing it would be because he wanted to be with her.

Troy was silent for a moment that felt like an eternity. He licked his lips. His expression was pained. He looked down at the palms of his hands, opening them up to his eyes. He looked back up at the blonde beauty sitting amongst the sheets, his blonde beauty the past few weeks, and still his now if he decided to break up with his girlfriend for her. He sighed loudly, and walked towards the bed. Sharpay looked up at him in wonder as he stopped in front of her. He brushed some hair behind her ear, and cupped his hands around her face. He held her face and looked at it for what seemed like forever, looking deep into her honey brown eyes. He finally leaned down to kiss her ever so softly, their lips touching briefly in a sweet embrace. He finally rested his forehead against hers. Sharpay smiled, both their eyes closed, feeling safe in his arms, and relieved.

"I'm sorry Sharpay." he said.

Sharpay's face crumpled as she registered the weight of his words. The bastard! She had completely misread this kiss, had thought of it as the beginning of something new and wonderful, but it was...an ending. He was leaving her. He wouldn't choose her. In those three words he had chosen that raven haired beauty over the blonde one in his arms. In those three words, he had ended all hope of him saying another three worded phrase she had longed so desperately to hear him say to her for so long.

"What?" She said, pulling back, her devastated expression having completely given way to tears. Sobs began to come uncontrolably, a strong fear of hers coming true; She was crying in front of Troy. But she was at a point beyond caring by now. If she had to put down her defenses for Troy to see how truly helpless she was, how badly she honestly needed him, albeit. She had to keep herself from shouting, "Don't leave me!" at him admist the sobs that now choked and gagged her, and blurred her vision, mascara seeping in and burning at her eyeballs. She wouldn't say that. She was Sharpay fucking Evans, and if nothing else, she had dignity. Love, friendship, happiness, these things were inconsistent for any human being, but Sharpay always had her pride.

"Baby don't cry." Troy said. She could hear the raw emotion in his voice. The pity. No man would ever pity her. She redirected all of her overwhelming emotions into the anger that was now filling her.

"Don't call me baby." she said, in a voice so filled with hatred that he backed away from her as if her words had somehow been able to inflict physical pain on him. She reached for something, anything, to hit him with. She came back with only a pillow but she began to beat it against his torso, her tears and cries coming out in furies of rage now. When the pillow slipped from her grip onto the ground, she began to beat her tiny fists against him, as hard as she could, squinching her eyes shut and screaming everytime she made contact with his body.

"Sweetie. Sweetie, shhhh." He was trying to bring his arms around her, trying to calm her, to console her, comfort her. She wanted him to fucking love her!

"Get out." she said.

"Sharpay." Troy looked very sorry, and tried again to hug her.

"Get out!" she screamed at the top of her lungs this time. The noise caused Ryan, who had been hearing commotion but up until this point had chosen to ignore it, to swing open the door of his sister's bedroom, glancing around worriedly.

Troy took a step back from Sharpay, but didn't leave the room, fidgeting nervously, wringing his hands, trying to figure out what he could do to appease his mistress.

"What's going on?" Ryan asked. He said it to Sharpay, and only Sharpay, and Troy knew it. He remained silent.

"Get out!" Sharpay screamed again at Troy, her voice cracking. She was horrified with herself, and how shameless she was being with her emotions but there was no reason to stop now. "Ryan please, I want him to leave. Please. Just make him go." She said to her brother, bringing her knees to her chest. She found a pillow and held it against her legs, trying to calm herself down enough to think logically.

"Sharpay." Troy tried once more to get her to be rational and talk to him.

"She asked you to get out." Ryan said. Troy was suprised at how angry he sounded, despite the even tone he tried to keep in his voice.

Troy turned to the blonde boy"I'm just trying-"

"My sister asked you to leave her alone." Ryan interrupted, walking towards Troy, "Just respect her wishes and get out." He glanced towards the bed where his sister sat, trying to redeem herself from her state of hysterics and felt surges of anger rushing through his body towards the arrogant jock who had done that to the sister he loved, the one he'd even shared a womb with before birth.

"Leave." Ryan said firmly to Troy, only feet away from him now.

"Hey man," Troy said, unphased, "easy. I just-"

Troy was unable to finish his sentence as a powerful fist landed smack across his jaw, sending his head backwards in a fit of whiplash. Troy felt like his brain was rattling inside of his skull, and he braced himself as he steadied, ready to rebound the initial hit. He glared at Ryan angrily, and started to bring his fist up, but was stopped when he saw Sharpay. She was still sitting on the bed, knees brought up to her chest. But the crying and hysteria had stopped. She had fallen into that serene state after a fitful cry. Her face was covered in tear stains and streaks of mascara, and her eyes were glossy. But she was staring at him intently now, her jaw hung open. He knew she would never forgive him if he hit her brother now. The hatred he had already stirred in her would settle. He would dissapoint her even more. And he couldn't bare to do that.

He eased his stance, and dropped his hands defensively at his sides. He looked at Sharpay sadly, truly sorry for everything he had put her through. He wanted to make her happy, to make everything okay. But he had a girlfriend. He had obligations to Gabriella, they had made serious plans, he was committed long before he had begun to develop feelings for Sharpay.

"I'm sorry." Troy said to Ryan, glancing only afterwards at Sharpay again. He looked back at his assualter, "I'll leave." he told him.

Then Troy turned and walked out of the bedroom, leaving the two twins alone.

Ryan looked at Sharpay, "I'm sorry Shar." he said softly, "What happened?"

"He didn't pick me." Sharpay said, spacing out, staring at the pink wall, never turning to face her brother. "I asked him to make a choice." she let out a shaky breath.

Ryan had warned Sharpay. He knew this wouldn't end favorably for her. But he didn't chose to point this out now. "I'm so sorry. Do you want to talk?" he asked her instead.

"No." she said.

"Are you-"

"I'm sure." she said, "Please, I just want to be alone."

Ryan nodded, and walked out of her room, shutting the door behind him, leaving Sharpay as alone as she felt.


"Ow!" Sharpay yelled, shoving Ryan hard away from her. He slammed into the hallway wall.

"What was that for? I was just playing." Ryan said defensively.

"You call an assualt to my chest 'just playing'?" Sharpay replied cooly. She rubbed her tender breasts softly, hissing with the aching pain.

Ryan eyed her for a second. "I'm sorry I ran into you." he said, "But seriously I barely tapped your chest. Uh, does it really hurt that badly?" he said hesitantly.

Sharpay glared at him, both knowing what the other was thinking.

"Sorry, sorry." Ryan held his hands up.

"Just leave me alone." Sharpay hissed, seething.

"Moody much?" Ryan grumbled under his breath.

Sharpay turned around to face him, and he saw the horrified expression at his harmless words.

"I didn't mean anything by that!" Ryan said, and Sharpay nodded gravely, turning around to leave for her room.

It had been two weeks since Troy had left Sharpay, and a very stressful two weeks they had been for her. At school she did all she could to avoid even looking at him, and she also found herself unable to look at Gabriella, afraid she would be too transparent and reveal the mixed guilt and hate. Unable to even look at Gabriella, as well as many of Troy's friends, she seemed to become devoid of some of her icy-ness, as the Wildcats and the braniacs were her favorite subjects of nasty jokes. She hadn't completely transformed though. In fact, girls in the hallway who were unlucky enough to get in the way of her path, or students who were guilty of small crimes such as popping their gum too loudly or standing too close to her personal space were chastised much more harshly than ever in the past. She flew off on a rage that neared tantrum at times, unable to control the extreme amount of irritableness she had felt the past few weeks.

Sharpay had become aware of her rapid moodswings, as her brother never failed to point them out. Her testiness accompanied by her swollen breasts, unusual waves of nausea sometimes accompanied by vomiting, and the frequent headaches were too much for her brother to ignore. But she ignored them, hoping that if she did, the fear that nestled in the pitt of her stomach would never become a reality and would simply go away with time. But her period had been due a week and a half ago and she was growing more and more unsettled with the uncertainty at the back of her brain.

She was sitting on her bed, trying to concentrate on the magazine she was leafing through, when there was a soft knock on the door.

"What?!" She called impatiently to her brother on the other side of the closed door. Ryan stepped in tentatively.

"Knock knock." he said as he entered the room.

Sharpay sighed loudly, "Can I help you? I'm busy."

"Oh yeah, I'll let you get back to that very important issue of Cosmo in a second sis." Ryan said sarcastically, "But I got you a gift."

Sharpay's face brightened considerably and she looked up at him gleefully, for the first time noticing a paper bag in his hand.

"Ooh. What'd you get me?" she asked.

"You wouldn't get it yourself, so I went down to the drugstore and picked it up." he said throwing the bag at her.

Sharpay frowned at him. There was nothing in a drugstore that would be of interest to her. Cheap makeup. Bottled soft drinks. Advil. Nothing that would make a good present. Sharpay opened the paper bag and reached in. She pulled out the only item and her eyes widened as they came to terms with what her brother had given to her.

"Why the hell would you give me this?" She looked up at him angrily.

"Take it." he said.

"No. I don't need to. This is stupid." Sharpay tried to sound cool as she threw the small box on the bed and crossed her arms as if to shun it.

"Sharpay!" Ryan's voice was harsher than she would have expected and she dropped her arms, looking up at him in shock.

"You can't stop ignoring this." Ryan said, "You're going to take that, today. You need to know now if you...are, as soon as possible so you can keep all your options open."

Sharpay sighed and picked up the box, opening and pulling out the home pregnancy test. Neither of them had yet to actually come out and use the word 'pregnant' or anything synonymous with it. They had merely danced around the subject.

"I'll go pee on the stick." she said begrudgingly. She looked back at her brother, "Come with me? Please." she held out her hand to him.

Ryan nodded and took her extended hand in his own, following his sister into the bathroom for the first time since he was six.


A/N: Well, in the next chapter we'll finally find out if Sharpay is really preggers or if there's something else wrong with her. I wanted very much to bring physical harm to Troy in this chapter and as he is fictional and I could not, I had Ryan, also fictional, punch him in the face. Overall, I love Troy, but in this chapter, yeah he totally deserved it. Reviews are emensely appreciated as always!!!!! :):):) xoxo.