Disclaimer: No…it's not mine…leave me alone, I'm still upset over the fact that I don't have Zac Efron...or those cute gold high heels that Ashley Tisdale wears in the opening number of High School Musical 2.

Author's Notes: Oh, Good Glory…I just found a Troypay fan video for "Clumsy" ( in other words, the last song I used in this story) on YouTube…you guys should check it out, it's really cool..

Chapter 10 – Week Three (Shut Up And Drive)

One week later, at 8 am sharp, Troy awoke to the sound of his alarm clock.

"…I already graduated, I'm not goin' back to school…!" he groaned, keeping his eyes shut.

"…Maybe not, but you do have to go back to work," said his mother, as she appeared in the doorway to his bedroom "…your hair seems to have faded quite nicely."

"Yeah, well, two showers a day for an entire week will do that," Troy replied, as he opened his eyes and sat up in bed. "But that week off was sooo nice…"

"I'll bet it was," his mother remarked "…seeing as how you took Sharpay to the arcade, you took her to a carnival and got her to eat cotton candy, you taught her how to skateboard, in our driveway – "

" – Yeah, I'll help you replant those flowers she fell on, I promise," Troy added.

Mrs. Bolton smiled.

"I know you will," she said. "You also still have to serve your punishment for when you two stayed out all night during that rainstorm…boy, once Sharpay leaves, it looks like you'll be doin' some hard time!"

Troy's face fell a little at her last comment, which did not go unnoticed by his mom, whose face softened.

"…You really care about Sharpay, don't you?" she asked.

Troy threw the bed comforter off of himself and got out of bed.

"…She's just a friend, mom," he told her, "and I just want her to have a good summer before she has to leave, that's all."

"But you'll miss her when she leaves, won't you?" his mother asked.

"She's just a friend, mom…!" Troy repeated.

"I know, I heard that part!" his mother told him.

"Good!" Troy exclaimed, getting frustrated.

"But as her friend, you'll miss her, won't you…?" Mrs. Bolton pointed out.

"Yes…!" Troy exclaimed, exasperated. "She is my friend, and since I am HER friend, I will miss her!"

"That's the answer I was looking for…!"

"OK, then!"

"OK…now go take a shower, you don't wanna show up to work already sweaty and gross," his mother instructed.

"That's what I'm tryin' to do!" Troy told her.

"Well, what's stopping you?" his mom asked.

"You, you're blocking the doorway!" he told her.

"Oh, right…" his mother remarked, realizing that she was, in fact, blocking her son's way out. So she turned sideways and gestured for him to go past. "Your breakfast will be ready for ya when you get outta the shower. Oh, I almost forgot, what do you want with your eggs…?"

"Uh…bacon!" Troy replied, just before he went into the bathroom.

An hour later, Troy walked into the Lava Springs country club.

As he walked toward the kitchen, he spotted Fulton walking toward him.

Not wanting a confrontation with his boss this early in the morning, Troy lowered his head and stared at the floor as he walked down the hall, trying to avoid eye contact.

…But it was a hopeless effort, because Fulton had already noticed him.

"Bolton!" he called out, as Troy passed him.

With a wince, Troy stopped and turned around to face his boss.

"It's nice to see that you've…recovered," Fulton remarked, glancing at Troy's brown hair.

Troy gave him a nervous smile and nodded.

"Uh, yes sir," he replied "…it turns out that two showers a day is pretty good for some quick results!"

"Well that's…good to hear," Fulton replied. "Anyway, you'll be wearing the white uniform today, Bolton, so go punch in and change."

"I'm caddying today, sir…?" Troy asked, "I thought you said, on the phone, that I would be working in the kitchen, doing dish duty…?"

"Well, as it turns out, Bolton, there's been a request for you out on the golf course," Fulton told him.

"By who…?" Troy asked.

Troy hurried into the kitchen and immediately spotted Chad, who was standing over at the counter with Zeke, laughing about something.

Troy rushed over to Chad and grabbed his shoulder from behind, turning him around.

"Whoa, hey man, ya scared me…!" Chad exclaimed, surprised.

"Please tell me you're caddying with me today!" Troy begged.

"Uh, no, I'm in here doing dish duty," his friend told him "…and I thought you were, too…?"

Troy shook his head, keeping his panicked eyes on Chad.

"There's been a request for me out on the golf course," he told him.

"By who…?" Chad asked.

"Mr. Evans."

Chad suddenly understood why his friend looked so panicked.

"Oh…" he said, "well, so…? Mr. Evans likes you, remember? This could be a…good thing!"

"Chad, last week I was the only witness when his daughter highlighted her hair hot pink…what are the possible chances that this could be a good thing?" Troy asked.

"You still haven't shown me that tattoo, by the way…"

"Chad...!"

" – well, ya haven't!"

"Hey, can I see it…?" Zeke asked.

Troy rolled his eyes.

"If I show it to you, can we please get back to the matter at hand…and that matter being that Mr. Evans is probably planning on killing me with his nine – iron?" Troy asked.

"Yeah, sure," Chad and Zeke both replied.

Troy sighed, and rolled up his left t – shirt cuff, displaying the black outline of a roaring lion's head that was tattooed on his bicep.

"Nice…!" Chad and Zeke exclaimed.

"It's kinda cracking since I've been having two showers a day for the past week, but it's still there," said Troy.

"Hey, Zeke…!" Martha called, from the other end of the kitchen "…can ya come here for a sec? I think I got something wrong with the spaghetti sauce!"

Zeke sighed and glanced at Chad and Troy.

"Duty calls," he said, then headed over to Martha.

Once Zeke left, Chad turned back to Troy.

"So, what am I gonna do?" Troy asked.

"…What about Sharpay's tattoo?" Chad asked, smirking.

"Chad...!"

"C'mon, man! I'm just curious…!"

Troy groaned.

"She got a…flower," he told him, "but Chad – "

"Where'd she get it?" Chad asked.

Troy glared at him.

"…At the drugstore, the same place I got mine. Now, Chad – "

"I meant where on her body…?" Chad asked. "C'mon, arm, foot, shoulder blade, maybe…?"

" …It's on her hip, OK?" Troy snapped. "It's a flower, and it's on her hip! Now, will you please tell me what I'm gonna do about Mr. Evans…?"

"Just…hope for the best, man," Chad told him. "Oh, and just remember, if he does decide to take a swing at you, you'll be standing next to a whole bag of golf clubs that can back you up."

Troy groaned.

"Thanks for the advice, man," he said, and headed for the back of the kitchen, to punch in his time card.

"Hey, Bolton…!" Chad called after him.

With a sigh, Troy turned around.

"What?" he asked.

"…The tattoo was on her hip, you said…?" Chad asked.

"Yeah, it was on her hip," Troy answered.

Chad smirked.

"Did ya have to help her put it on…?" he asked.

Troy glared at him, turned back around, and continued to head to the back of the kitchen.

Ten minutes later, Troy was hurrying out to join Mr. Evans at the first hole on the golf course.

…Well, he was going as fast as a person can go when they're carrying a golf bag full of golf clubs.

"Mr. Evans…!" he greeted, as he reached Sharpay's father. He then spotted Jason, who was apparently caddying for the man who was accompanying Mr. Evans', and nodded in his direction.

Jason gave a little wave in reply.

"Troy, it's good to see you, son…!" Mr. Evans greeted, smiling at Troy.

Oh God, he wants to kill me...Troy thought, but covered up his fear with a smile.

"I'm sorry that I'm late, sir, I wasn't aware that I was gonna be caddying today until I ran into Mr. Fulton when I came in – " Troy began, trying to apologize.

" – Oh, don't worry about it, son," Mr. Evans quickly cut him off, "it was a last – minute request, so really, I'm the one to blame. This doesn't…mess up any plans for you, today, does it?"

"Oh, not at all, sir!" Troy was quick to answer.

"That's good…" said Mr. Evans, then he turned to observe the first hole."Well, since it's only the first hole, I think I should be OK with the five – iron…that sound right to you, Troy?" A/N – My brother knows way more about golf than I do…I'm pretty clueless about the sport. So all these club choices are just total shots in the dark for me.)

"Uh, yes sir, that sounds like a great choice," Troy replied, casting a nervous glance over at Jason, who knew that Troy and Sharpay had been spending the past few weeks together.

Jason just shot him a sympathetic look as he selected a club for Mr. Evans' companion.

"So, Troy…" Mr. Evans began, as he lined up his shot "…I understand you've been spending a lot of time with Sharpay, lately."

Troy's eyes widened, but then Mr. Evans turned to look at him, so his face quickly changed into a calm expression.

"Uh, not much…we've just been hangin' out a bit," Troy told him, his nervousness growing.

"…And dyeing each other's hair, I saw," Mr. Evans added, taking a swing at the golf ball, and watching it as it flew across the green.

"Uh, well…" Troy stuttered.

He then caught Jason giving him look that was a mixture of curiosity, and near – laughter…obviously he hadn't heard about that part of Troy and Sharpay's activities.

Troy just glared at him.

" – It's perfectly alright, Troy," Mr. Evans told him. "I mean, her mother wasn't too crazy about Sharpay's hot pink highlights, but they've washed out, so, no harm done."

"…Yeah, but I bet no one took pictures of Sharpay for their private collection," Troy mumbled, as they waited for Mr. Evans' companion to take his shot.

"What was that…?" Mr. Evans asked, as his friend took a swing at his golf ball.

" – Uh, nothing, sir," Troy replied.

"So, Sharpay seems to be taking her time with you, doesn't she…?" Mr. Evans asked.

"…Beg your pardon, sir?" Troy asked.

"Well, it's been a few weeks, Sharpay usually doesn't wait this long before she brings her boyfriends home for dinner," Mr. Evans told him.

Troy's eyes widened.

"Oh no…!" he exclaimed "…no sir, it's not like that with us…that is, we're not…actually…dating, we're just friends."

"Ah, I see…" said Mr. Evans "but you two must be very good friends by now, what with all the time you've been spending together, this summer."

Troy took a deep breath, looked the older man in the eye, and decided to tell him the truth.

"I just…want her to have a good summer," he said "…she deserves it."

Mr. Evans nodded.

"She does, indeed," he agreed.

Troy nodded, and they all seemed to pause for a moment, before Mr. Evans spoke up again.

"…Alright then, what do you say we follow the balls, then…?" he suggested, to the three others.

Troy stared at him, speechless.

"…The golf balls," Mr. Evans added.

"Oh…of course!...Right, the golf balls…!" Troy exclaimed. "Yeah, let's…let's follow the golf balls!"

Mr. Evans gave Troy a curious look, then turned and walked further into the golf course with his golfing partner.

When the older men walked away, Troy let out a breath, and Jason walked over to stand beside him.

"You OK, man…?" he asked.

Troy glanced over at Jason.

"Just do me a favor…" he said.

"Sure," Jason agreed.

"…Try not to leave me alone with him, while he's still holding a golf club," Troy requested.

Jason smiled and nodded.

"…You coming, boys?" Mr. Evans called, from a few feet in front of them.

"Oh, yes sir…!" Troy replied, and the two boys went to catch up with the two older men.

Two hours later, Sharpay awoke to the sound of her cell phone ringing.

"…I really need to shut that thing off, once in a while," she grumbled, as she kept her eyes closed and felt around her night stand for her pink cell phone.

When her hand finally touched the cell phone, she grabbed it, and flipped it open as she opened her eyes.

"…Hello?"

"…Sharpay!" Taylor exclaimed, on the other end "…did you just wake up?"

Sharpay looked over at her digital clock.

"…Well, it's ten a.m., in July, so…yeah," Sharpay replied, sitting up in bed.

"Well, you've got thirty minutes to get ready before Gabriella and I reach your house, so ya better get outta bed now," Taylor told her.

Sharpay frowned in confusion.

"You're coming over to my house…?" she asked. "Why are you coming over to my house?...Did we have plans?"

"You may not have, but I definitely have something in mind," Taylor told her. "Thirty minutes, Sharpay…now get crackin'!"

With that, Taylor hung up the phone, and Sharpay frowned again, holding the phone in front of her, still confused.

"…Aye aye, captain," she muttered, then groaned and got out of bed.

Turning on her stereo, she tuned it to her favorite radio station.

'…Get you where you wanna go if you know what I mean
Got a ride that's smoother than a limousine
Can you handle the curves? Can you run all the lights?
If you can baby boy then we can go all night

Goes from 0 to 60 in three point five
Baby you got the keys
Now shut up and drive
(Drive, drive, drive)
Shut up and drive
(Drive, drive, drive)…'

Seeming satisfied, Sharpay bobbed her head a little to the music as she opened her closet doors and began to look through her options of what she would wear for Taylor's little surprise.

When Taylor pulled up in Sharpay's driveway, Sharpay was already sitting on the front step, wearing a green halter top and blue jean capris.

"So, what's this surprise…?" Sharpay asked, as Taylor and Gabriella got out of the car and walked over to her.

"I wish I knew," Gabriella confessed "…Taylor wouldn't even give me a clue as to what she's got planned."

Now Sharpay was really confused.

"Wait, you don't even know…?" she asked Gabriella.

Gabriella shook her head, so Sharpay glanced over at Taylor.

"…Taylor, what's goin' on?" she asked.

Taylor smiled.

"It's simple, really…" she said, and tossed Sharpay her car keys.

Sharpay caught them, and stared down at the keys, still confused.

"Why are you giving me your car keys?" she asked.

"Because you Sharpay Evans, are going to drive my car," Taylor told her.

Sharpay's eyes widened.

"Uh – uh…" she mumbled.

"Yep," Taylor replied "…you're going to drive one way, and Gabriella is going to drive back."

It was Gabriella's turn for her eyes to widen.

"What? Taylor, no…!" she whined. "You know that I can't – "

" I know that you can," Taylor told her, "you just won't. But y'know what…? Starting today, that's gonna change…for the both of you."

"Taylor - !" Both girls started to whine, but Taylor raised her hand and silenced then.

"I don't wanna hear it…!" she said. "Now, Evans, get your ass in that driver's seat!"

"But Taylor - !"

" – Now!"

So, with a pout, and a glare directed at Taylor, Sharpay got up and walked over to the driver's side of Taylor's car.

Pushing Gabriella to the passenger's side, Taylor opened her door and gave her a shove, prompting her to get in. With a sigh, Gabriella complied, and when she was in the car, Taylor walked to the back door of the car, and looked over at Sharpay, who was still standing in front of her door, keys in hand.

"Shar…!" exclaimed a voice, and she also heard a finger snap, that seemed to be coming from right beside her.

"Shar…!" Taylor snapped.

With a jolt, Sharpay glared over at Taylor.

"OK, OK…!" she grumbled, opening her door "…everybody just stop yelling at me!"

Taylor frowned in confusion, then shrugged and got into the backseat.

Sharpay still looked uneasy as she buckled her seatbelt, she then glanced over at Gabriella, who was already buckled in, and was wearing the same uneasy expression.

"Put the keys in the ignition, Sharpay," Taylor reminded her.

"Oh, right…" Sharpay replied, putting the key into the ignition, and turned it, bringing the engine to life.

But just as she placed her hands on the steering wheel, her cell phone rang from where she had it clipped onto the front pocket of her capris.

"Ah…saved by the bell…!" Sharpay muttered, smiling as she unclipped her phone from her pocket.

Gabriella smiled, too.

But Taylor didn't.

"Turn it off, Shar…!" she ordered, sternly.

"But it could be an important call, Taylor!" Sharpay pointed out "…like, an emergency, or something!"

"She's right, Taylor," Gabriella added.

Taylor rolled her eyes.

"Alright, fine," she said, "you get one phone call!"

"…Most prisoners do," Sharpay mumbled.

Gabriella giggled.

"…What was that?" Taylor asked.

"Shh, Taylor! I'm on the phone!" Sharpay told her, putting the phone to her ear.

"…Hello?"

"Help me!"

Sharpay's eyes widened.

"Troy…?"

"Oh boy…" Taylor muttered, leaning back in her seat.

"Please, God, help me…!" Troy exclaimed, in a low whisper.

"Why are you whispering?" Sharpay asked.

"Because I'm on the golf course with your father, seeing as how he requested that I caddy for him, and he's only about ten feet away, chatting it up with his golfing buddy!" Troy explained, turning away from the older men, as Jason blocked their view of him.

"Well, what's the problem with that…?" Sharpay asked. "Daddy likes you, remember?"

"Yeah, but Sharpay, he keeps asking me…questions," Troy told her.

"What kind of questions?" Sharpay asked.

"Well, at first he wanted to know why you hadn't brought me home to have dinner with you and him and your mom, yet…!" Troy began.

"…Uh oh," Sharpay squeaked.

"Yeah," Troy replied. "And even though I told him that we were just friends, he still seems to think that we're dating, but that we're just trying to keep it from him and your mother…!"

"…Uh oh," Sharpay repeated.

"Exactly…!" Troy excalimed, in a harsh whisper. "Sharpay, he's givin' me the third degree about being your boyfriend, when I'm not even your boyfriend!...So, please, help me!"

"I'm on my way," Sharpay told him, then snapped her phone shut and handed it to Gabriella.

"Hold that," she instructed "…in case he calls again."

"Sharpay, what's goin' on?" Taylor asked.

"Well, Troy's always tryin' to be my hero…" said Sharpay, as she did a shoulder – check, and backed out of the drive way "…and now it's my turn to be his, so I hope you're buckled in tight, girls."

Gabriella and Taylor glanced at each other, then tightened their seatbelts as Sharpay got out of the driveway and sped down the street.

A half hour later, Troy, Jason, Mr. Evans and Mr. Evans' golfing partner were still out on the golf course, when a pink golf cart sped over to them and screeched to a halt right in front of them.

The two young caddies and two older men watched in awe as Sharpay and Chad both scrambled out of the golf cart.

"Hi, Daddy!" Sharpay exclaimed, as she walked over to them, while Chad just stood by the golf cart.

"Oh, hello, Princess…!" Vance Evans greeted his daughter, smiling. "I didn't know that you planned on playing today!"

"Oh, well actually, I'm not," Sharpay told him, then glanced over at Troy, "I just came to tell Troy that his mother wants him to come home right away, there's some kind of big family emergency happening, apparently."

"Oh…!" Troy and Mr. Evans both exclaimed, but for different reasons.

"Oh, well, that's too bad…!" Mr. Evans told Troy.

"Yes, it is!" Troy added "…but, if my mother says it's an emergency, then it must be a pretty big emergency cuz she doesn't usually want me to come home from work just for something small, so…"

"…Oh, yes, by all mean, go!" Mr. Evans told him.

"Uh, Chad will gladly caddy for you, in Troy's place, Daddy!" Sharpay told her father, gesturing to Chad.

"Oh, I'd be happy to, sir!" Chad told him, and took the bag of clubs from Troy.

Troy winked at him as he handed the bag over, then he headed for the golf cart.

So Sharpay and Troy quickly got into Sharpay's golf cart, and waved at the group as they sped away.

When Sharpay parked her golf cart near the patio, she and Troy got out again, and Troy immediately hugged her.

"Thank you…!" he exclaimed. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you…!"

"It's OK," Sharpay told him, hugging him back, then they let go of each other and Sharpay smiled at him.

"I completely understand your distress," she told him. "Daddy's usually OK around guys I hang out with, until he starts to suspect that we're dating, or something., then he gets all…"

"…Dad – like," Troy finished for her.

Sharpay smiled at him.

"Yeah, pretty much," she said "…Oh! I gave Fulton that family emergency excuse for you, too, so you're actually free for the rest of the day. You want a ride with me…? Gabriella and Taylor are just waiting in the car."

"No, that's OK, I brought my tru – " Troy started to explain, but then he stopped "…wait, did Taylor drive you over here?"

"Oh, no actually, I drove over here in her car," Sharpay explained. "It's a funny story, actu – "

But then, she stopped, and realized what she had said…Troy did, too.

"I drove here…" she muttered, then looked at Troy and laughed "…I drove over here!"

"You drove!" he exclaimed.

"I did, I drove…!" she replied, and hugged him "…I drove, Troy! I drove…!"

Troy laughed, and swung her around.

"Ok, so in honor of this momentous occasion, you finally driving again, and saving my butt, I have a special question for you," he said "…I do owe you, anyway."

Sharpay smiled, but her smile quickly turned to a look of confusion as Troy got down on one knee, in front of her.

"Sharpay Evans…" Troy began, as he looked up into her eyes "…will you sing in the talent show with me?"

Sharpay grinned.

"Yes, Troy, I will," she replied.

Troy smiled and stood up, then he grabbed her and swung her around again, making her laugh out loud.

…What they didn't notice was that Sharpay's father had been watching them from the golf course, and his curiosity concerning his daughter and Troy Bolton was definitely growing now.

The song stanza was from "Shut Up And Drive" by Rihanna.

Happy Halloween, y'all!

- Ace's Buddy