Aftermath
As the two flustered teenagers broke apart, their eyes simultaneously scanned their surroundings in a complete 360 degree angle. Gabriella's heart beat intensely like an African drum. Her eyes were full of fear, assuming the worst had happened - Sharpay spotted the two in a questionable position and was appalled. When Gabriella's eyes caught sight of the tousled blonde hair, she was relieved to find that Sharpay was not staring straight at them, instead keeping her attention focused on something on the ground.
A flicker of hope went through her that by some chance, Sharpay did not notice their encounter. She certainly wished that Sharpay did not spot them for fear that all hell would break loose when Sharpay Evans unleashed her wrath. Getting involved with Troy seemed almost like taboo - just another unspoken rule of Sharpay's.
"There she is," Troy breathed out, his eyes spotting Sharpay seconds after hers.
Though nearly thirty feet away from Sharpay, they both heard her curse loudly. Tourists walking across the bridge seemed to stop and gawk at the blonde, wondering what all the commotion was about. Gabriella and Troy soon understood that she wasn't yelling at them but at her shoes.
Sharpay leaned against the railing as she took off one of her heels, swearing like a sailor. Even the tourists who did not speak English seemed to understand her foul language through the tone of her voice and her body language.
"She broke her Jimmy Choo heel," Gabriella announced unnecessarily since it was quite obvious as the blonde stomped through the remainder of the bridge barefoot, "She's pissed."
"I can tell," Troy mumbled quietly, silently thanking his stars that Sharpay did not witness what just occurred - well, was about to occur.
They both stood in their place awkwardly for a minute, their stares glued to Sharpay's path as if it was the most fascinating observation in the world. Truthfully, both were too embarrassed to face each other after the heat of the moment that was ruined by the blonde herself.
Sharpay's angry scowl did not diminish even when she saw Gabriella and Troy. Her expression did not change and the two instantly tensed, fearing that she did see something she should not have.
"My fucking heel cracked on that god damn bridge. I knew I shouldn't have ordered these shoes online," Sharpay grumbled as soon as she approached them, pointing to the broken heel of her right shoe. "These probably had a defect or something. You can't trust anything from the internet these days!"
Gabriella released a sigh of relief, wiping imaginary sweat off her brow. Sharpay cocked an eyebrow curiously, wondering what made her so nervous. Her eyes scrutinized every contour of her face before noticing the matching expressions of guilt, annoyance, and embarrassment that graced both Troy and Gabriella's face.
"What's going on you two?" Sharpay's hawk eyes grilled them both relentlessly.
"We were just - um. We just b-bought pizza for, uh, Chad and them. We, uh, felt bad that he can't move r-right now and - yeah," Gabriella stammered. Sharpay's expression did not change, and they both knew that Sharpay noticed their nerves.
However, Sharpay being herself, she quickly dismissed the thought from her mind and brought the attention back to herself as she burst out into a rant. "Karma's a bitch! I bet you I broke my heel just because Chad fell out of a fricken gondola-"
"Maybe you shouldn't have pushed him," Troy quipped in defense of his friend.
Sharpay peered at him menacingly, "Fuck off Bolton. He had it coming to him. No one calls me a bitch cept for me!"
"Yes, because it definitely makes sense to shove a guy off a boat and sprain his ankle for calling you a bitch," deadpanned Troy.
Sharpay shot daggers at him, "You want to be next?"
"Sharpay," Gabriella cut in, chastising her. "Calm down. Hurting anyone's not going to make you feel any better."
"Don't tell me what to do."
Gabriella shoved a package of cold leftover pizza toward Sharpay's chest. "Here, maybe lunch will make you feel better."
"Nothing's gonna make this shit day any better. Let's just get the hell outta here before I get a splinter up my foot," Sharpay spit rudely, grabbing the box of pizza and shoving a piece of the pizza inside her mouth anyway.
Troy sighed heavily, lagging behind the two girls as they made their long route back to the area where Chad and Bailee were waiting.
God damn Sharpay and her impeccable ability to ruin everything.
"So, what have you two been up to?" Chad wagged his eyebrows inconspicuously, his shiny white teeth plastered into a sly smile as both Troy and Gabriella attempted to support his weight while retreating back to the area where the Vespas were parked. Bailee strolled alongside them while Sharpay, still angry at the world, trudged in front of them at a fast pace despite walking barefoot.
Troy stifled the urge to groan, knowing it wouldn't be appropriate to complain to Chad about Sharpay while Gabriella was nearby.
"Pizza's good," Bailee remarked, her chubby cheeks strained with pasta sauce. "Didja have fun?"
Troy paused, pondering whether or not to sound nonchalant. Not knowing how to respond to that, he replied indifferently, "Sure."
The small smile on Gabriella's face slowly disintegrated at the tone of his voice - devoid of all emotions. It was as if he had forgotten everything that was about to happen half an hour ago out on the Rialto Bridge.
"You don't sound too thrilled. That boring without me, huh?" Chad joked.
Not a chance, Troy wanted to say. If anything, he was thankful for the short amount of time that he spent alone with the stunning brunette.
Instead, Troy replied to Chad's comment with a dry chuckle, unaware of the frown that formed on Gabriella's face.
As Sharpay approached her studded Pink Vespa, she swerved around and looked at Gabriella expectantly. Gabriella finally caught her gaze, instantly understanding that she was waiting for her to catch up to them so that she would get on the backseat.
A flash of horror appeared on Gabriella's face as she remembered Sharpay's wreckless driving.
"What'chu starin' at me for?" Sharpay snapped with an attitude, still irritable from her broken heel. "Get on!"
"Oh, hell no. I am never riding the same vehicle as you if you're driving ever again," Gabriella replied in a frank manner, matching Sharpay's attitude.
Sharpay laughed bitterly, placing her hands upon her hips. "Oh, really now? Last time I checked, you don't even know how to operate a Vespa, so that eliminates the possibility of you driving. And just how do you plan on getting home if you're not getting on with me, hmm?"
Gabriella stood silent, a sense of resignation settling upon her as she realized she had no other choice.
Troy caught the desperate look on her face and butted into the conversation as he blurted out the words without thinking them through, "She can ride with me!"
Sharpay, Chad, and Bailee's eyebrows all rose by a centimeter at the sound of Troy's eager voice. Even Gabriella looked shocked.
"I mean, if she wants to," Troy corrected himself, the upbeat tone of his voice dissolving as he trailed off.
Chad's mouth opened in protest, "And just who am I gonna catch a ride with?"
Everyone remained silent until Chad figured it out for himself.
"Are you fricken kidding me?" Chad shouted angrily as he realized he had only one other option - to ride with Sharpay. Chad turned to Troy, shooting him a pleading look, "Dude, do you seriously expect me to ride with her." Chad emphasized the name dramatically as Sharpay rolled her eyes. "She pushed me into the lagoon for God's sake! That woman needs to attend anger management classes, no lie!"
The sound of Bailee's girlish giggle only fueled Sharpay's anger.
"Oh, stop being such a pansy, Danforth. It's not like I'd crash the car on purpose and kill you in the process!"
Chad looked terrified as he turned back to Troy, "Do you see that! The Sadist is going to murder me, Troy. This is all one sick ploy to lure the injured, defenseless boy with the magnificent hair into her trap - AKA the Devil's vehicle - and kill him."
"This is ridiculous," Sharpay bellowed, gritting her teeth. "You're making me sound like a fucking ax murderer. Just get on already and you'll be lucky if I don't push you off into the middle of the highway roadkill."
Chad grew more hysterical by the second, "Do you see that? She pushed me off a gondola! What makes you think she won't push me off a Vespa and then deliberately run over me? Please, spare me! I have so many years left to live."
"Chad, she's not going to kill you. That would be illegal. Just get on the Vespa," Troy said calmly, beckoning Chad over towards Sharpay.
"I've lived a good seventeen years!" Chad cried out dramatically, waving his left hand in the air. "Goodbye, world!"
"I'll miss you, Chad!" Bailee called out as she walked towards her cousin's Vespa. Her bug eyes looked up expectantly at Troy, raising her hands in the air so that he could lift her up and sit her down in the middle between himself and Gabriella.
"Troy, I don't feel right about this. I mean, Chad's already injured his ankle. As much as I don't want to go through the horrific experience that I did earlier this afternoon, I don't want to inflict anymore pain upon Chad-" Gabriella rambled before Troy smiled reassuringly at her, placing his hand on her shoulder before cutting her off.
"Gabriella, don't worry about it. His driving's not any better than Sharpay's whether he realizes this or not so I'm sure he'll be fine."
Gabriella sighed, her heartbeat racing from his simple touch on her shoulder. She looked genuinely guilty for forcing Chad upon Sharpay, Troy observed.
"Are you sure? Cuz I guess I could handle another ride of Sharpay's - maybe if I tried really hard not to get sick-"
The sound of Sharpay's engine revving cut her off this time.
"Hey, I said don't worry about it. It's gonna be fine," Troy whispered into her ear, his hand running down the length of her arm comfortingly before tugging on her wrist, ushering her towards the Vespa. Bailee sat in the middle, looking over her shoulder and grinning at their display of affection.
"C'mon guys, hurry up!" Bailee squirmed in her seat, motioning them to come over faster. "Chad and Sharpay are already on the road!"
"Coming Bails," Troy answered her call, his hand gripping Gabriella's as they made their way towards his Vespa.
Troy climbed up in the front as Gabriella settled into the back. Bailee leaned back onto Gabriella, frowning. "Aww, you don't have a beer belly like Chad!"
Both Troy and Gabriella cracked up, bursting into fits of laughter.
"I'm serious!" Bailee turned back to face Gabriella as she continued her explanation, "Chad claims he has 'rock hard abs' but he's really a pile of mush!" She paused before adding an afterthought, "Troy says it's from all the beer Chad's been drinking since Basketball season ended."
"Hey," Troy rebutted with a chuckle as he pressed on the pedal. "I never said that."
"Yuh-huh, you did!" Bailee exclaimed accusingly, "Remember? It was when Chad was posting a shirtless picture of himself online right before you clicked on Gabri-"
"Right," Troy deliberately cut her off before she completed the sentence. "I remember now."
"Mhmm! You better not forget again, mister!" Bailee reprimanded him, wagging her finger at him.
Bailee twisted her upper half around to face Gabriella before whispering imperceptibly, "Psst, I think he likes you."
Gabriella felt her cheeks flush as she flashed Bailee a small smile, not bothering to suppress a giggle.
"Bails, you know I'm right in front of you, right?" Troy's voice rang out with a tinge of annoyance. "I can hear everything you're saying."
"No, you can't!" Bailee declared loudly. "This is a private conversation, Troy! Butt out!"
She turned back around to Gabriella, whispering again, "See, he didn't deny it! He definitely likes you."
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