A/N: Enjoy and let me know how it turned out, please. Many thanks.
Sharpay smirked and deliberately pressed the stop button on the remote before sinking back smugly into the expensive, fluffy, white couch. She stuck her chin up and rapidly turned to face her brother, who was sitting next to her on the sofa.
"So…how was that?" she prompted eagerly.
Ryan, whose eyes were wide-eyed and disbelieving, was still staring at the television screen in shock. Of course he thought his sister capable of something like this; it was just strange to see it all play out on screen…and even stranger that he was inadvertently a part of it.
"It was…very believable," he said with a slight bit of hesitation, trying to keep the odd feeling of uneasiness out of his voice.
Sharpay, however, sensed none of his discomfort and merely squealed while simultaneously jumping up from the couch in proud glee. She scuttled over to the DVD player and popped out the disc, sure to carefully place it back into its container, so as not to damage the valuable blackmail.
She then turned to Ryan and gave him a hard glare, her eyes glistening with sheer controlling domination. She held out the container for him to take, and he reluctantly grabbed it from her, wincing almost as he did so.
"Don't let me down Ryan. Our entire plan rests on you showing this recording to Gabriella. I did my part, now you do yours," she commanded bitterly, making sure to look her most intimidating.
Ryan shifted uncomfortably under her gaze before looking back down at the disc. He couldn't quite place why, but he all of a sudden felt very uncertain about this whole scenario. Sure, he had been willing to play along in the beginning…but that was before things actually started to fall into place for the twins' plan. Usually, by this stage, their schemes had already failed miserably. He never really anticipated doing something like this. It felt…wrong, to put it simply. He wanted Gabriella so badly. But if this was the only way to break up Troy and Gabriella, maybe he truly didn't want any part of it.
"And…should I choose not to do my part?" he asked neutrally, trying to make it sound like an honestly theoretical question.
Sharpay gave him a look of surprise, but then laughed heartily at the absurdity of his inquiry. "Oh, Ryan, you actually had me going there for a second. But, seriously? Trust me. If you love Gabriella as much as you say you do," she said, glaring at him and pointing at the box he held, "then you'll show this to her. You know it's the right thing to do."
She smiled maliciously, knowing that her brother was so easily manipulated. "Good luck. Let me know how she takes it," she whispered, patting Ryan's head and scampering off.
Ryan was left sitting on the couch with a DVD and a very confused conscience.
HSMHSMHSMHSMHSM
The next day at school, Ryan was still feeling unsettled by the time the last bell rang. He had been trying to convince himself all day that it was either indigestion or butterflies of anticipation for when Gabriella came crawling to him for comfort, but he knew that neither of these suppositions were true. He stopped by his locker and slowly packed his books away, giving himself more time to think this over.
Of all times, his sister chose to walk by his locker right then. "You have the evidence?" she asked harshly.
Ryan gave her a weak smile and held up the disc. "Right here," he mumbled.
She just smiled and winked at him, loving the feeling of power and control that she was getting. And she couldn't wait to see Troy again, if not just to increase his own unease.
She walked away from Ryan's locker and he sighed. He closed his locker and made his way slowly to the auditorium.
He was surprised to find that no one was there, but then he slapped his forehead in remembrance that Gabriella had a short Scholastic Decathlon team meeting today after school. She would be late. He silently thanked the stars that he would not have to face her immediately and he took a seat on the stage. He hesitantly pulled the DVD out of his backpack and stared at it, contemplating silently.
He and his sister had decided that he should be the one to show Gabriella the recording. That way, when the tears of disbelief came and she needed a shoulder to cry on, Sharpay's designer clothes would not be in danger and Ryan would have one-up on any other potential boyfriends Gabriella might consider. At least he could be a comfort to her in that situation…which was more than this tape would ever let her think of Troy again, though Ryan knew this was all through Sharpay's manipulation. He never thought Troy would fall for such a trick, but he did. And since he did fall for it, would that make it technically the right thing to do if Ryan used the blackmail? Maybe Troy really wasn't good enough for Gabriella…but then, the kiss was really all Sharpay's doing. So perhaps it wasn't Troy's fault…these thoughts circled round and round in his mind like a confusing mesh.
He just never actually thought it would come to this. He was so close. So close. He could feel it. Every day, their dance lessons became more and more intense, and, thusly, more and more heated. He could sense her beginning to feel comfortable around him…perhaps too comfortable, and he felt like he was truly winning her heart the old-fashioned, tried and true, correct way. No cheating, no lies, no blackmail.
And then the actual plan which started it all came back and bit him in the butt. And here he sat. Alone in an auditorium, thinking. Thinking very deeply.
Meanwhile, Kelsi tiptoed into the theater, careful not to disturb Ryan and get on his bad side ever again. His endless apologies, whether in person, through letters, or (her favorite) flowers sent to her house and locker, had been above and beyond substantial, but she was always extraordinarily nervous around him, anyway. After the "incident," she made sure to tread especially lightly around him. She would still secure her man…no amount of displaced anger could possibly change her mind…but she needed to do so a little more gradually than she had hoped.
Ryan was so immersed in thought, however, that he did not even notice when Kelsi ascended the stage and stood directly behind him. She peered curiously over his shoulder to see the object of his attention, then grimaced in confusion. A DVD? Why would a movie be causing her Ryan to be so pensive?
She cleared her throat slightly, hoping to get his attention. His head shot up, and he turned around slowly to face her, appearing very bewildered as to how she came to be there. A look of sudden realization crossed over his features and he shiftily shoved the disc back into his backpack.
"Kelsi? How long have you been here?" he asked, the worry in his voice shining through.
"Hey, Ry. Not too long; you didn't miss anything as the world spun by you, if that's what you're wondering. I've only been here a few minutes," she rambled, trying to cut herself off and calm down. "What's wrong?" she questioned, hoping that he would give her an honest answer.
She should really stop hoping for things.
"Oh, you mean…you mean me? Nothing's wrong with me, no. Nothing. You? Is something wrong with you?" he stuttered, obviously very distracted and concerned.
Kelsi couldn't help but smile at his cuteness when he was so concerned. "No, nothing's wrong with me. But something is up with you, Ryan. I've hung around you enough to be able to tell when something's bugging you."
She could see his mind working rapidly behind his pale blue eyes, debating back and forth between whether he should confide in her or not.
Time to bring out the heavy artillery.
"Come on, Ryan. After what you said to me the other day, I think I deserve to know what's wrong with you when I ask," Kelsi demanded, frightening even herself at being able to use guilt to get to him.
Sure enough, that familiar look of worried shame overcame the other emotions in his eyes, and he sighed, defeated. Kelsi set her bag onto the stage floor and sat down. Ryan glanced up at her, as though sizing up her potential to keep a secret, and nodded decisively.
"I just…I don't know quite what to do," he started uncertainly.
Kelsi nodded patiently. As though she couldn't figure that much out for herself…
Ryan continued, "I mean, Sharpay tells me to do one thing, and a part of me really wants to do it, too, you know?" he stated cryptically, looking to Kelsi for some sort of confirmation.
Upon her continued (though flustered) nodding, he went on, "But I know that--that what I'm potentially going to do is really wrong," he hesitated, trying to figure out how much he actually felt comfortable with Kelsi knowing. "It's sort of like a game, I guess. I mean, it's like I want to win…but do I want to win like this? By…cheating? I just don't know," he finished hastily, unsure of exactly where to take the conversation without giving anything more away.
He ducked his head away from her, as though trying to keep the burden of his decision to himself, but Kelsi placed a hand on his shoulder and he turned back around to meet her soft gaze.
"Ryan…first of all, let me say that I have no idea what in the world you were talking about," he laughed a little at this. "And secondly, my advice is, cheesy as it may sound, to follow your heart. Just do what you know is right and is going to make you feel better in the long run. Don't let Sharpay make all your decisions for you. You're your own person and she can't control you," she said strongly, amazing herself at how much her motivation had changed her in the past few weeks. Now Ryan Evans was confiding in her and she was giving him guidance?!? This crush seemed to be doing much more for her than making her blush at every "Ryan-sighting."
Ryan seemed impressed, if not taken-aback, by her words. "That's some pretty strong advice, Kels," he mumbled. "I think you should take some of that advice, too."
Her heart leaped into her throat. The part about not letting Sharpay control her? Or…or the part about following her heart?
Why was everything Ryan said so cryptic today?
Kelsi nodded timidly, then decided that she had had enough of the "new-and-improved" Kelsi for one day and strode over to the piano bench to warm up before rehearsal.
Ryan took out the DVD and stared at it one last time.
If you love Gabriella as much as you say you do, then you'll show this to her.
Sharpay's words echoed inside his head, confusing him beyond belief. But he knew this was cheating. He knew this wasn't right. It came down to a battle between his morals and his sister's.
…Then why was he making this decision seem so hard?
Just then, Gabriella, in all her radiance, walked into the auditorium, muttering apologies for her tardiness.
"I'm so sorry, Ryan. I wanted to get here sooner, I really did, but I got hung up at the meeting," she apologized frantically before spotting the case in Ryan's hands and seeing the bothered look on his face. "Is everything okay?"
With one last look at the disc, Ryan tucked it away inside of his backpack.
"Yeah," he sighed, leaving his conscience with a clear feeling…but his heart with an oddly empty one. "Everything's fine."
We've still got three whole chapters left so don't think this is the end. Thank you to my anonymous reviewer, SMARTALIENQT, and all others who I believe I thanked in review replies. Let me know how it is and make me aware of any errors you spotted, please. Lovely, hateful, boring, insulting, entertaining or uplifting; however you feel, vent in a review and I will be much obliged. Thank you.