Hi.
Did you like June?
Well, June's over.
Bring on the July.
This is fluffyshit.
Basically, this story takes place in a huge time slot between "Gotta Go My Own Way" and "Bet On It".
July 4th
9:45 PM
Lava Springs Kitchen
Ouch.
A dark pain spread over the bridge of his nose and crept across the creases of his cheeks. His face automatically twisted into a grimace of pain.
Had she seriously just closed the door in his face?
Yes, Troy Bolton realized that he had screwed up and had hurt a few feelings, but exerting physical pain on someone seemed quite out of character for Gabriella. However, she was pissed at him, he had to understand. For what? For trying to reach his dreams? For doing what he had been planning on doing since he was practically born?
"Move," he grunted over Chad's shoulder as his former best friend clocked out. They were all worn and weary after Lava Spring's Annual Independence Day Bash, and Troy was merely being verbal about his weakness. But Chad angrily spun around, thrashing Troy's already-bruised face with a hard stare.
"If you don't mind, superstar, I would like to clock out without some jerk-off breathing down my neck." He snarled.
"Well, could you hurry up the process please? Some of us have places to be." Angry words were spilling from Troy's mouth before he could stop them. He was just tired. Tired of the wet sound of washing dishes and no laughter. Tired of the cold shoulders and the shaking heads of disappointment. Tired of having no friends.
"Like where? With the Red Hawks?" By then, most of the Wildcats looked away from their kitchen duties to indulge in another one of Troy and Chad's fights. Troy was taken aback by the bitterness in Chad's voice. But his voice came to a harsh whisper. "Are you just trying to push us all even further away?" He didn't wait for an answer before storming out of the kitchen, swinging open those cursed doors.
Faucets ran, but no one occupied them. Cupboards were wide open, but no one bothered to fill them. Every single one of his peers were too busy glaring at him, including Gabriella in the far corner of the kitchen. Was it just Troy, or had her look of disappointment transformed into rage?
He didn't stick around to find out.
July 4th
9:51 PM
Lava Springs Main Entrance
He wished there was more light.
As he shuffled to his car from the dark main doors of the country club, Troy wished he could see the ground beneath his feet instead of the giant expanse of the golf course...
...and that girl in the distance...
There was no doubt that it was Sharpay Evans, the only teenager that would be caught dead at Lava Springs after work hours. Troy's head cocked to the side, observing her sullen expression caught under the florescent lights that hung over the country club's towers. Though she stood on that hill, the clay mountains behind her and grass rolling around her feet, she seemed as though she had nothing.
"Sharpay!" Troy didn't know what was wrong with his mouth as of late. It opened at inappropriate times. Troy realized that Sharpay looked like she had wanted to be alone, but he was robbing her of her request. Her blonde head snapped in his direction and he gave a small wave.
Now, what was wrong with his feet? They were moving towards her in a pace faster than they had ever moved towards Gabriella. He couldn't understand it, what with Sharpay Evans being the girl that had made some of his summer days hell. He felt like talking to her and figuring out why she was actually... frowning...
"Hi, Troy," she said in a small voice as Troy reached her on the hill. His surroundings seemed a little brighter in the dark of night. Bright enough to see her dressed in a so-not-school-regulation denim skirt and a sequin-studded white sweater. A patriotic ribbon was placed carefully in her hair. "Did you have fun tonight?"
"Oh, yeah, most definitely." Troy smirked, enjoying the way Sharpay jumped right into conversation instead of beating around the very awkward bush. "I loved waiting on people and washing dishes. I wouldn't spend my time any other way." Sharpay gave a polite giggle and rocked on her toes. She was barefoot, he noticed. "The fireworks were cool, though."
Sharpay nodded softly. What was going on here?, Troy mused. Where was that girl that would be running a finger down his chest or discussing what they would sing for the Midsummer Night's Talent Show? Something was wrong. Very wrong.
"I hope you don't mind me asking but... is everything okay?"
Suddenly, Sharpay closed her deep chocolate brown eyes and a tense breath came from her nose. Her chin wobbled and when she opened her eyes again, Troy noted the way tears had rolled onto her lashes. He was taken aback once again. He couldn't handle crying girls. Especially girls like Sharpay who always seemed to have mounds of... issues. "I... I'm... I'm such a bitch, Troy."
Now, where was this coming from? It wasn't far from the truth, but Troy stood stiff, eyes slightly large as she continued.
"A few days ago, I ruled that all employees weren't allowed to be in the show. I basically made sure all of your friends knew that they were worthless and didn't belong and I..." she sniffled and looked to Troy, searching for any give in his eyes. But he mostly looked surprised. "I was just terrible. But you know the worst part? Gabriella. Super Gabriella came to everyone's rescue and tried to break me in front of my friends. But it's strange. Because everything she told me was... right." she shuddered. "Nobody's ever insulted me before."
Troy fought the urge to chuckle. Despite everything, Sharpay never lost sight of what was important to her... herself. Troy found it hilarious that her wails and tears weren't over the kind of person she was, but over something as superficial as her reputation. Then again, that was the kind of girl Sharpay was, and Troy had learned to embrace it.
And fear it.
Her mascara had leaked from her eyes and her sniffles became loud. "I hate this," she whined. "I hate not being right and I hate that I didn't have a comeback and I hate Gabriella Montez." her voice wasn't loud, but it was firm. Firm enough to shatter the still atmosphere and send her words high into the mountains. But she didn't stop there. "And I hate the Wildcats and I hate Mr. Fulton and I hate these stupid Independence Day Bashes and I hate..." she hesitated. She looked to a shell shocked Troy and she looked back to the night mountains, wondering if she should really say what she wanted to say.
"And you hate...?" Troy managed to spit out. It was difficult for him to absorb all that she was rattling on about, but he tried. Because he wanted to...
And I hate that I love you, she wanted to say, but didn't because she fucking hated that song. "I hate that you chose her. Gabriella. After breaking it off with you, like, twice for the dumbest reasons, you still go back to her for some reason instead of at least trying us. Me, who's tried to give you everything, even a fucking college education. There must be something in the water." Her last sentence oozed spoiled brat, but the rest of her speech was heartfelt, and she hoped he understood.
"Sharpay?" he suddenly asked, stuffing his fists into his Lava Springs khakis. "I'm not really sure yet, but I think you're preaching to the choir."
She gave him a wide-eyed stare and the brown in her eyes became more vibrant.
"Being with Gabriella has always been like being fifty feet off the ground." he sighed. "It was always unreal. We sort of liked it that way for a while. But now, being here, being with you... I don't know. It's like you've given all of us a dose of reality. I realized that Gabriella is wanting to stay in that fantasy land, but I'm ready to move on. If she can't accept that, or even think about coming with me, then maybe... maybe she's not the girl for me."
Sharpay's face was soft and her smile told him all he needed to know. It was okay with her that he had just spilled his thoughts all over her denim skirt. It was okay with him that she was forceful and determined.
"Are you going to kiss me already?" Sharpay pressed.
Troy laughed. "Maybe you don't know how this works," he said in a teasing tone. "You're supposed to say something about how sorry you are for being mean, then you're supposed to give an elaborate reason to excuse you're meanness, then you're supposed to re-invite all employees to be in the talent show, then you're supposed to..." his words dragged as her hands reached for the blue collar of his Lava Springs polo. She drew his chest against her body and his heart furiously pounded and her breath tickled her upper lip and...
Sharpay's shriek almost drowned out the deep boom that came from the sky. Both heads snapped up into the night to see furious red sparks fall into the mountains. Again and again, the atmosphere growled before spewing forth red, white and blue flames. Troy was captivated. So captivated, that she never saw Sharpay pull a walkie-talkie out of the back pocket of her skirt.
"I told you to wait until after we kissed to que the fireworks, you dumbass!" she barked.
"What?" Troy's brows furrowed in confusion.
The signal on her walkie-talkie scrambled before a familiar voice bleated: "Sorry, sis."
"What?" Troy cried. Another onslaught of fireworks colored the sky and colored Sharpay's beautifully pissed expression. He watched as she turned away from him and looked to one of Lava Springs' light towers in the distance.
"You may not be able to see me well, but, I'm flicking you off right now," she shouted over another thunderous boom. "You ruin everything. Over and out." Sharpay tossed her talkie into the grass before turning back to Troy.
"You... you planned this?" instead of being hurt like a sane person, he gave her a crooked smile. "All of it?"
Impressive.
Very impressive.
"From the tears to the big finish," she said casually. "You have a bruise on your nose," she stated.
Troy tilted back his head and laughed to the fireworks. "I can't believe you!" he shouted. Carefree, happy. Most definitely happy.
"Yes, you can." she said evenly. Sharpay suddenly smiled her smile which out-shined the twinkling fireworks by one million watts. "This is me. You know you love it."
Yes, I do love it, he wanted to say, but concluded that it was too soon to use the word love. So instead, he pulled her towards him by the belt loops in her denim skirt and her body pressed against his and his mouth pressed against hers and there suddenly were no fireworks or light towers or walkie talkies.
There was a scheming girl who wrapped her arms around Troy Bolton's neck.
There was a boy with a bruised nose who would bear the pain if it meant kissing Sharpay Evans the way he was kissing her then.
Oh, and there was an entire group of Wildcats in the distance, demanding an explanation.
Ennnnnd.
Personally, I loved this.
You should review and tell me how much you loved it too.
