Chapter 11: London Calling
A/N: Well the wait is over. My new laptop actually came on tuesday but it took me a couple of days to get used to it. It's so crazy! Money well spent that's all I have to say. Following this chapter this story will go back to being updated weekly. Tuesday or Wednesday depending on work and college. Or the waves. Anyway...a few of you caught what I was trying to do and you guessed right. I don't remember who it was, I'll have to check my reviews later.
Life slowly returned to normal after Sharpay was released from the hospital. Maddie and Ryan talked to each other in the corner of her exam room as the doctor performed his last checks before releasing her. She had a pink cast on her leg and a sling for her arm which was wrapped in bandages. Sharpay insisted on the pink cast saying that it matched most of her wardrobe.
"Well Miss Evans, unless there's anything else you wanted to ask me you can head home now." He looked at her as she thought of something to ask him.
"Nothing off the top of my head, thank you very much Doctor Johnson." She smiled happily as he gave her a pat on her shoulder and turned to leave the room. When he was gone, Ryan pushed a wheelchair toward the bed as Maddie helped her off the bed and into the seat.
"Come on let's get out of here. If I have to spend another minute here I think that I'll go crazy." Sharpay tugged on her brother's sleeve to get him to start moving.
"Yes master." Ryan said sarcastically, rolling his eyes at her. He rolled her out of the room down the hall to the elevator. After a few steps out the door he stopped and backed toward the room. Peering inside, he saw Maddie standing there looking out the window while absentmindedly rubbing her arm.
"Hey Maddie, you coming?" He asked her, bringing her out of her reverie. She quickly snapped her head back to the door where Ryan gave her a puzzled look.
"You ok?" He asked. It wasn't something totally out of character for her to do so he wasn't too worried about it.
"Yeah I'm fine; I was just thinking about…things." She shrugged and made her way out of the room to join her siblings in the hallway.
"I don't know about you but I am itching to get out of here so can we kind of step on it." Sharpay said impatiently. Maddie smiled at her sister. It was such a Sharpay thing to say.
"You're just lucky you're in that wheelchair or I wouldn't take that tone from you missy." Maddie joked back with her. The elevators closed and they began their descent to the lobby. It was there in the main waiting area where Troy was waiting for them. He made his way over to the trio as they exited the elevator.
"Hey Sharpay, how are you feeling today?" He asked as he bent to give her a hug in the wheelchair.
"Well I must be feeling good or else I wouldn't be leaving the hospital." He smirked at the normalcy in her tone and noticed that she really did look better.
"Although, I would feel better if you gave me a kiss…" She looked up at him with a mischievous grin on her face as he mock-grudgingly complied. Ryan looked on horrified as his baby sister kissed Troy right in front of his eyes.
"Hey, hey come on. We're in the middle of a hospital." He reminded them. While all of this was going on, no one noticed the twinge of sadness and jealousy that streaked across Maddie's face for a brief moment. It was quickly replaced by the same face that Ryan had on his face.
"Yeah cut it out you two, I'm going to end up with diabetes watching you." Everyone stared at her as an awkward silence followed her statement.
"You know, diabetes…the thing you get when you eat a lot of sugar…and you guys are all sweet…ugh I need to hang out with smarter people." Maddie laughed as she walked ahead of them.
"Oh, haha. I get it now." Ryan said after she left them. Sharpay just raised her eyebrows at him and he shrugged.
"Ok, I don't get it. I was just trying to make her feel better." Troy ignored him and spoke to Sharpay.
"Come on, I'll help you to your car." He took the wheelchair from Ryan and left him standing in the middle of the lobby trying to figure out Maddie's joke.
The drive home was uneventful and uncomfortably quiet. Sharpay sighed wistfully as she looked out the window at the passing scenery. Maddie was silently thinking about the phone call that she had with a friend from Boston.
That phone call
Maddie was sitting at her computer typing a paper for a class when her cell phone went off. She looked at the screen before answering, a smile crossing her face when she read the message. 'London Calling' It said. She quickly answered the phone, happy to hear from her beast friend.
"Hi London! What's up?" Maddie said into the phone excitedly.
"Hey Maddie guess what!" London answered her just as excited. There was only the sound of breathing on both ends of the phone.
"Are you there Maddie?" London asked after a few moments.
"Yeah, I'm still here. I thought you were going to tell me something."
"Huh?" London answered, clearly confused.
"You said guess what so I just waited for you to tell me." Maddie explained to her.
"Right, you have to guess first." Maddie sighed irritably.
"I don't have time for games London. I have to go to the hospital pretty soon so just tell me." London didn't need to ask why she was going to the hospital, she had heard the whole story during one of there weekly phone conversations.
"Fine, I'll tell you. Next weekend there's this thing in LA and I was thinking of stopping over in Mexico to come see you." Maddie stared at the phone, slightly amused by London's explanation.
"London, I'm in NEW Mexico. Really, how many times do I have to remind you?" She shook her head as if London could actually see her.
"I knew that. Isn't that what I said?" Maddie gave up as anything further she might have said would confuse her more. Sometimes Maddie wondered if London was just acting stupid. Nobody could be that clueless right?
"Never mind. So you're really going to come visit me?" If anything, her best friend would be able to cheer her up.
"I promise, I really am coming to visit you. I miss my best friend." And sometimes Maddie wondered how she deserved such a great friend.
"Aww, London. I miss you too." A brief but comfortable silence passed before London started speaking again.
"So, any cute boys there?" Every phone call had to include that question from London. The answer was always the same.
"No London. There is this one guy but he kind of likes my sister." Maddie sighed again as she thought about Troy and how they had been getting along so well.
"It's his loss. Don't worry Maddie, he'll realize soon enough that you are the best person on earth and that he was an idiot for thinking that you're sister is better than you." Maddie smiled brightly at London's compliment.
"Thanks London, you always know how to cheer me up."
"So Maddie, any cute girls there?" London asked her seriously. Maddie stopped what she was doing and looked oddly at her phone.
"Are you trying to tell me something London?" Maddie was also serious in her return question.
"I'm kidding, you totally got freaked out though right?" London was laughing at her over the phone.
"Goodbye London." Maddie exaggerated and rolled her eyes before hanging up.
Back in the car
Maddie still wasn't sure about what London had said. Sharpay and Troy were happy together and she didn't want to be a bad sister and try to break them up. But she still did like Troy. It hurt her on the inside when she acted indifferent about Sharpay's seeing Troy. She was torn between her need to be a good sister and her attraction to her sister's boyfriend. Why does this have to be so hard?
"Home, sweet home." Ryan said as he parked the car in the driveway. Maddie helped Sharpay out of the car as Ryan gathered her things and held the door open for them.
"Oh, I'm so glad that my baby girl is out of the hospital." Their mother appeared in the living room and moved to give her a hug.
"I'm sorry I couldn't meet you there. I had this meeting with this lady that wants me to design her wedding dress. Total bitch." The triplets each put their hands up to their mouths and gasped.
"Mother, language." Sharpay scolded her. If it was one thing about their mother, she loved her children to death but didn't really know how to behave like a mother. She was hardly seventeen when she had them herself so she was still acting a bit like a teenager.
"I don't scold you when I catch you kids talking like that." She put her hands on her hips and eyed them carefully.
"Oh, umm…mom." Maddie said carefully. She was not quite comfortable in calling her mom though she was getting used to it with each day.
"Yes, what is it?" She asked absently as she picked at something on the edge of her shirt.
"A friend of mine from Boston is going to come visit me next weekend. Is it ok if she comes over?" Three pairs of eyes to look at Maddie skeptically.
"You're friend is going to fly all the way from Boston to New Mexico just to come visit you? I wish I had friends like that." Sharpay said.
"Well London is doing this thing in LA and then she is going to stop here on the way back." The staring continued as what she had said sank in.
"London. You mean London Tipton. The heiress of that hotel that you work at. You're friends with her?" Their mother asked incredulously.
"She's kind of my best friend. We've been through a lot." Maddie said as she remembered all the good times she had with London.
"Oh my God! I wonder if she would wear one of my dresses! It'll be all over the news. Oh I have to go get something ready." Their mother left and started humming as she hurried toward her office.
"Our mom is so crazy." Ryan said as he plopped himself into a couch.
A/N: Hopefully that was worth the wait. It wasn't as long as I originally thought it was going to be because I had to cut the end off. It's going to the next chapter because it fits better there. So if this chapter ended abruptly to you that was the reason. I really appreciate the reviews and the warm reception that this fic is recieving. Over 10,000 hits! That is a huge number. Maybe not for some people but it is for me. Thanks 10,000 times. Peace out.
