Ok there were literally no reviews for the last chapter. Not sure if that's because everyone has been busy or because it just stank. Stunk...whatever the right past tense of stink is. Yeah i always forget somehow. Anyway now we're on to the next chapter. I keep going back and forth between trying to figure out what to write. I know what I want to write, it's just i've got more than one idea and i don't know where to start and thanks to my tons of homework I can't write more than one in...well a long time it seems like. Anyway during the break i forced in with my recent giant pile of homework, this is what i came up with....
Disclaimer: I don't own HSM, the characters, the song, or the Cheetah Girls.
No chance, no way
I won't say it, no no
It was the night at East High that everyone had been waiting for. The gym was buzzing with excitement throughout the night and began to slowly die down with each song he DJ played, turning into the ultimate relaxing evening. Couples danced together, friends chatted, teachers chaperoned and made sure no one was getting serious - yes, even teachers at East High kept a strict policy about things such as French kissing. The gym was beautifully decorated with stramers, banners, and balloons and the small circular tables all around had lacy table clothes along with lavish centerpieces and of course the dishes that students would eat for five minutes before returning to the dance floor. In the center of the gym was a full-grown tree with small lights adorned throughout it and together numerous couples waltzed around it.
Martha was leading Jason, as the poor guy was completely clueless when it came to dancing. He had been so busy struggling for finals and worrying about graduating that he had barely had a chance to attend any dance classes. Not that he minded Martha leading, of course. But as usual all the other guys seemed to know what they were doing and Jason was the odd one out. Oh well, their loss. Those other guys weren't dancing with a mad hip-hopping machine.
Ryan was beautifully leading Kelsi around, both quite skilled in the art of the waltz. After all, playing numerous music on the piano Kelsi had taken some time as a little girl to learn the proper moves to the given music. Ryan on the other hand had been dancing since he could walk and easily didn't go missing a step.
Sharpay was being quite tolerant of Zeke, as she was a far better dancer than he was - in her opinion, of course. Sharpay did take the lead a few times and when Zeke thought he had gotten it, he did something to mess up. Stepping on her shoes, almost spinning her into the punch bowl....it was amazing Sharpay kept her temper under control. But when Zeke finally did get the moves right, the Blondie was practically swept off of her feet. Who knew Zeke could catch on when he wasn't playing basketball or baking?
Chad was quite hesitant when it came to waltzing. Sure he had taken plenty of lessons and he was trying to impress his girlfriend Taylor, but this kind of slow dance just wasn't his thing. Luckily for him, Taylor had done her research. Sure she wasn't a dancer, but she was a bookworm. She learned just as much by reading about the waltz as she did dancing it. She instructed Chad to look at her as opposed to their feet and even went through telling him which steps to take and what to do. Chad had caught on much quicker than Zeke and wasn't so quick to mess up at a time like this. Chad waited until he made sure he got every step right, and then looked as confident as he did on the basketball court.
The only couple missing from this group of Wildcats was Troy and Gabriella. Gabriella had gone off to early orientation for Stanford in California and Troy, despite his talk with Chad, ended up driving all night there just to be with her. Yes, it was going to make them mad late for the spring musical that was to be held the next day, but it was worth it. Chad was the only person who knew of Troy's plan before the prom; a few hours before he went to pick up Taylor, Mrs. Bolton called him frantically asking if Chad knew where Troy was. Although Chad had no idea at first, he quickly realized what Troy was doing and upon trying to contact Troy via cell phone and only getting voice mail, Chad knew his hunch was right. That calmed Mrs. Bolton down in a flash...at least Troy hadn't done something totally reckless. Now Chad had been a bit frustrated at first. Come on, giving up prom with friends just to chase after some girl he might not even be with after graduation? Chad had briefly complained to his mother before leaving the house, and being the level-headed one between the Danforth parents, she cleverly asked Chad if he would do the same for Taylor. As much as Chad wanted to deny that he would, he just couldn't. It was hard enough knowing now that she was going to the East Coast and he would be staying home. And this was the guy who claimed to Troy "you don't take the girl after high school". Go figure.
If there's a prize for rotten judgement,
I guess I've already won that
Once the song was over and more food was to be served, everyone made their way back to their tables. Yet Chad and Taylor were still dancing on the floor. Taylor attempted to get him to stop, but Chad seemed to be lost in his own world. Letting go of one of his hands and finally able to stop, Taylor snapped her now free fingers in front of Chad's face. Chad shook his head and immediately snapped back into reality.
"Huh? what?" he asked.
Taylor quirked an eyebrow. "The song's over Chad. Everyone's going back to the tables."
"Oh....I knew that." he lied.
Taylor merely shook her head. She knew him better than that. She started by folding her arms and giving him a doubtful look. No way he could lie to her and get away with it.
And as usual, her stare made Chad so uneasy. "What?"
Her look softened, knowing that something had to have been bothering him. "Chad is something wrong?"
"Of course not." he shook his head.
"You've just been dazing off a lot tonight. On the ride over I asked if we still had our after prom plans for tonight and you said the ham's in your pants." she explained.
"Did I?" Chad replied.
Taylor sighed. "We're at the prom, Chad. Tonight is supposed to be about us and our friends and right now it looks like you could care less about either."
"Tay you know that's not true." he said.
And then came the return of the doubtful look.
Chad groaned. Either way she was going to know that something was up. Taking her hand, Chad led her over to the side. "Troy ditched prom so he could go be with Gabriella." he finally confessed.
Taylor blinked before her eyes widened. "What?" she gasped.
"I was with Troy earlier and trying to convince him to come to the prom with us and I thought I got through to him, and then his mom called all worried and when I called Troy he wouldn't answer so I knew he was going to Stanford." Chad explained.
Taylor was just plain stunned. Sure she knew Troy could be a real sweet guy, but she never knew he could go to this kind of extreme for one girl. It was just too bad sometimes that Chad was never like that.
"Oh my gosh...that's so romantic." she realized.
"Yeah, real happy ever after." Chad muttered.
Taylor tilted her head at him. Of course, how could she not see it? "And you really wish he was here with us."
"Maybe." Chad answered in a baby voice not really wanting to admit it.
"Chad..." she started.
He sighed, "I guess I just wanted to believe that Troy wouldn't think Gabriella's more important than here and his friends. I've been his best friend since preschool and then she comes along and he knows her for a year and suddenly he wants to give up everything just for her. It just...it just makes me so mad that he would pull the ditching game for her."
No man is worth the aggravation
"But..." Taylor assumed that there indeed was a 'but' somewhere in there.
And she was right. "But...but...I guess I can understand why Troy would go." Chad admitted. "He's crazy about that girl. He's in California having the time of his life with her and here we are doing what everyone else is doing. And if it were you over there instead of Gabs, I'd probably just keep calling begging for you to come back. I couldn't pull a big stunt like Troy did just to get you back."
"But you know you can't do that next year. I'll be on the other side of the country, not a few states over." Taylor said softly, putting her hands on her arms. She and Chad had often tried to avoid the topic of college. They both had the same idea, that their relationship wasn't going to last. Chad would most likely want to enjoy the full college ride of flirting with the ladies and seeing other people while Taylor would be focusing on her studies and not looking for a relationship to get in the way, let alone a long distance one. As far as she was concerned anyway, Taylor wouldn't have time to have a boyfriend while at Yale. As much as she liked being in a relationship, especially with someone who was her complete opposite, Taylor knew that a long distance one would not totally ruin their schedules and relationship, but it'd also ruin their friendship. That in of itself was too precious for her to give up. It would only hold her and Chad back from success. But would either of them really want it to end?
"I know." Chad nodded quietly. "But we'll always have memories, right?"
"Yeah." she agreed. Of course it wouldn't be the same.
Chad shook his head but his voice remained soft and quiet. "Look this isn't good-bye yet. At least...not until graduation." And yet he seemed so hesitant in saying that. Did Chad want it to be sooner? Or was he really not ready?
That's ancient history,
Been there
Done that
"Right. So we should probably enjoy the time we have left together. Especially tonight." Taylor said.
"Which reminds me..." Chad said, easily going back to his usual flirtatious ways, "...there's something we haven't done all night."
Taylor knew where this was going. "And what would be?" she asked innocently.
"This," Chad answered with a smile before moving in and kissing her. Taylor responded by wrapping one arm around him and her free hand digging into his hair, which then led to Chad's reaction of wrapping his armd tight around her. It was one of their rare passionate yet soft moments. The passion between the two of them was clear. It wasn't just a boyfriend/girlfriend moment. There was obviously something else there. Chad and Taylor always fit so well together. There was just a natural spark. When they had first tried to break Troy and Gabriella up they realized what a great team they made. This relationship they had only made them stronger as a pair and brought them closer together. Sure, everyone thought Troy and Gabriella had the perfect relationship, but there was just something between Chaylor that Troyella didn't have. It was there, but no one could quite put their finger on it.
"Alright you two, break it up."
And as usual there goes the mushy moment. The couple broke apart to see the drama teacher Ms. Darbus staring at them with her hands on her hips. Ah yes, the PG level of affection the chaperons had established long before the prom. That's what they were forgetting.
"You can save this for after the dance. Get back to your seats and eat your main course. This is prom, not a Shakespearean romance play." Darbus told them.
"Right. We're on it, Ms. D." Taylor nodded being the loyal student. Taking Chad's hand she led them back to their table where Jason and Martha were already seated.
Who'd ya think you're kidding?
He's the earth and heaven to ya
Try to keep it hidden, honey we can see right through ya
Reaching the table, Chad pulled open Taylor's seat so she could sit down. Sending him a thank you smile, she then sat down at the table across from Martha. Chad glanced around the table and saw the dishes they were serving at the prom. He had no idea what it was, but he just hoped it tasted better than it looked. He then turned back to Taylor.
"I'm gonna go get us some fresh drinks." he said.
"Alright." Taylor nodded.
Jason got up from his seat. "I'll go with you." he told Chad. "I wanna see if they have any packs of sugar around."
Chad rolled his eyes as he and Jason walked to the beverage table. "Dude for the last time, you can't put sugar in soda. It makes you nuts."
"Ok so it made me dance the Cotton Eyed Joe for two hours straight last time but I can handle it..." Jason replied, their voices now fading as they walked off and other people talking was well heard over theirs.
Taylor smiled and rolled her eyes, wondering if those boys would ever learn. Hearing Martha speak, she turned her head towards her.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
Martha just giggled. "that's the boys for you."
"I suppose it is." she nodded in agreement.
Martha placed her finger to her chin, "Speaking of which, you and Chad looked like you were getting pretty cozy before."
Taylor shook her head. "I don't know what you were talking about."
"Alright I couldn't hear what you guys were talking about," Martha admitted, "but I did see your little romance moment."
"No offense to Chad, but one of the last things he is, is romantic." Taylor replied.
"It looked to me like you were in heaven kissing him." she observed.
"We're just enjoying the last time of our relationship while we can." Taylor stated, though she had no idea how Martha was going to believe her when she could hardly believe herself.
"No it was more than that." Martha replied.
"It was just an everyday kiss." Taylor defended.
"Sure it was." she said doubtfully.
Taylor groaned and leaned back in her seat.
Girl ya can't conceal it
We know how you're feeling, who you're thinking of
Knowing she wasn't going to get an answer from Taylor so easily, Martha decided to go with a different approach. "Have you ever thought of Chad as more than a boyfriend?"
"We're about to start college, Martha. There's no time to think about boyfriends. What more could a guy be right now?" she asked.
"Just because you're in a high school relationship doesn't mean it only has to be in high school." Martha explained. "Look at Troy and Gabriella. They're practically attached to the hip. Everyone knows they're not about to break up any time soon."
"Chad and I aren't Troy and Gabriella." Taylor reminded her.
"Maybe not, but don't you see some similarities in your relationships?" she offered.
Taylor shrugged her shoulders. "Opposites attract. Chad and I are practically complete opposites whereas Troy and Gabriella are opposites but with more of a common ground than me and Chad. Sure Chad and I both have a tendency to be stubborn, but other than that there's noting similar about us. He's a jock and a jokester and I'm a serious nerd. Troy and Gabriella, sure he may be a jock and she may be a math girl, but they connect through singing. What do Chad and I connect through?"
"I think you guys know that better than anyone else. You can't say that you and Chad are just a high school fling." Martha answered.
Taylor shook her head. "When we started senior year Chad was focusing on basketball and I was looking at as many colleges as possible. By the time the first semester was over we pretty much knew where we would be going after East High and agreed that a long distance thing wouldn't work. I need to concentrate on my studies and he probably wants the whole college experience and that includes seeing other girls."
"That's all you guys have talked about?" Martha asked.
Taylor shrugged again, "Haven't you and Jason discussed it?"
"We only recently got together. We're just going to see what happens with the rest of the year and take it from there. There's no sense in making plans now if plans are going to change." she replied.
"Well I think it's pretty obvious that Chad or I have no intentions of changing either of our plans." Taylor stated.
"Well you've got a week left before you decide to change your plans. And then we've got a couple of weeks of school left and finals. By then everyone's going to know where they're going for sure." Martha offered. "Why are you so ready to kick Chad out of your life anyway?"
"I'm not." she responded quickly.
Martha quirked an eyebrow, obviously not expecting that fast of a reaction from Taylor.
Taylor caught that and cleared her throat. "I mean...I'm not."
Before speaking again, Martha carefully thought her response through. She, like Taylor, was one of the smartest girls in school. Neither of them were to be taken for granted. But when dealing with each other or any other group of nerds out there every response had to be carefully thought out with pros and cons or evidence as to why they supported any statement they said. Taylor was well aware of this, which was especially why she was preparing herself for a smart comeback and trying not to give anything away.
"Taylor..." Martha finally spoke, "...do you think that maybe you're in love with Chad?"
No chance, no way, I won't say it, no no
You swoon, you sigh
Why deny it, uh-oh
If Taylor had been eating when she was asked that, she would have spit the food right out of her mouth. "Excuse me?"
Martha shrugged and repeated her question, "Do you think that maybe you're in love with Chad?"
Taylor rapidly shook her head. "no chance. Not me and Chad. Not like that."
"How can you not?" Martha asked. "When you look at him you've got this sparkle in your eye. He puts an extra bright smile on your face when he's by your side. Sure he may do stupid things sometimes but it wouldn't be the same if he did them. Face it, you love the stupid things he does. He makes you laugh and brings you up when you're down. He-"
"Martha, no. I am not in love with Chad." Taylor insisted.
"How do you know you're not?" she replied.
"How would you know if I am? We're eighteen, we don't know what real love is." Taylor replied.
"Until you experience it for yourself, which you obviously have." Martha stated.
"No I haven't. Chad's my first boyfriend, I can't love him." she retorted.
"How can you not? Give me three good reasons why you can't be in love with Chad." she said.
"We're about to go separate ways. Thousands of miles of separate ways. We're not going to be near each other and a relationship of that distance would only destroy us as a couple and as friends. We can't risk our friendship and there's no way it can last like that. He's bound to find someone better in the interim." Taylor explained. "Second, if we go with our instincts and try to be together then it's going to ruin all of our plans. we're not going to want to do anything without each other or go anywhere without having each other nearby. We'll be attached to the hip like Troy and Gabriella. That's not any good for a couple. We're going to end up doing something totally reckless. And...and..."
Taylor was really starting to let her emotions get the better of her. Here she was spewing out all the reasons why she and Chad shouldn't be in love let alone be together and she could barely handle it. Something wasn't right here. She wasn't supposed to be struggling to keep a stupid relationship with some lunkhead basketball man, she was supposed to be thinking about the future. She and Chad were the short term, they could never be long term. If they were then somehow everything was going to be messed up. But despite coming up with two good reasons of her own, Taylor halted at thinking of another one. She just couldn't. Why was it so hard to come up with one more friggen reason why she and Chad shouldn't be together when she knew it could just plain never happen?
"And most importantly, you can't be in love with him if he doesn't love you back." Martha finished for her.
Now that was something in the back of Taylor's mind that just bothered her. hypothetically, if she did love Chad and he didn't love her back then there was clearly no reason for them to stay together. What was the point of loving someone and committing to them if those feelings would never be equated? Maybe Chad really didn't feel that way about her anyway. After all he's dated lots of girls in the past. She was probably no different, aside from the fact that it was the first 'nerd' he dated. What made Taylor so special that Chad could have real feelings for her that he may have never had for any other girl? After all Taylor had kept trying to convince herself that this was all some high school fling. Maybe that's all it was to Chad too, just like everyone else. It didn't matter if Taylor loved him or not.... No, no! She was not just thinking that she might be in love with Chad.
It's too cliché
I won't say I'm in love
Martha raised an eyebrow watching Taylor's reaction. "Taylor are you alright?"
Taylor didn't respond. She placed her hand to her forehead, trying to keep herself under control. Suddenly she felt like everything was spinning, like nothing felt right. Taylor was one of a scientific mind so she relied on facts. She believed what she saw when she saw it because theories proved things right or wrong. And right now, unfortunately enough, Martha's theory seemed to be coming true. The one thing that Taylor had never thought would happen was happening. This just wasn't supposed to be how it was. Taylor was supposed to be planning for next year, not falling for her boyfriend.
"Taylor?" Martha repeated.
"I'll be right back." Taylor said as she let out a few heavy breaths before getting up and rushing out of the gym.
I thought my heart had learned its lesson
It feels so good when ya start out
My head is screaming "get a grip, girl!"
Taylor pushed open the door to the girls' bathroom and started pacing around, almost appearing frantic. She moved some hair out of her face and folded her arms, trying to get her thoughts together. She didn't even bother to see if there was anyone in there, she just needed some place to get things wanted to know that why, all of a sudden, everything became so dizzy and she felt like she couldn't remember a thing. All she did was picture college life...and all she had been able to see was Chad. She tried getting her mind onto something else and yet there he remained. He couldn't get out of her thoughts. And it drove Taylor crazy. Her breathing became heavy once more and her vision grew blurry.
Taylor was never one to fully understand the concept of falling in love. She didn't necessarily grow up with fairy tales and cheesy Disney movies with even more 'happily ever afters'. Sure she could daydream about things like that if she so desired, but she knew they didn't exist. Those things were just for stories and movies. There was no such thing as love at first sight or true love. Alright, so maybe she had doubted those intentions ever so slightly when Gabriella came into the picture with Troy, but that was totally different. Taylor didn't know where those two were going. It was too soon to tell if there really was a happily ever after for them or if it was true love. Now if she had seen the two together when they first met, after hearing Gabriella claim it was love at first sight, then perhaps Taylor would have a better time believing that. But Taylor sure as heck wasn't in love with Chad like that. It wasn't love at first sight at all. The two hated each other when they first met. there used to be a time where Taylor lived for their daily arguments. Something about them just livened her up a little. They challenged her, despite the fact they came from what she called a lunkhead.
But things change. The arguments died down and it almost became pure ignorance. Yes, in class one could almost always expect a debate from Chad and Taylor somehow, but other than that there was nothing. and then they teamed up and...it was a whole different way to see Chad. He wasn't the same lunkhead anymore. Maybe he matured or something...Taylor wasn't sure. But she knew there was something different about him. She couldn't quite tell what, but it was there. And somehow it attracted her to him. And although their scheme failed and thy did make things right, Taylor assumed things would go back to the way they were. But they didn't. Something inside her just kept thinking about Chad.
But she didn't even make the first move. He asked her out. Taylor had been shocked at first, but she did accept. Sure their first date wasn't perfect. Their second date was nowhere near good either. But towards the third one and when they double dated with Troy and Gabriella...something lightened up between them. As a matter of fact, during that first double date one would think Troy and Gabriella would leave early and let Chad and Taylor have time to themselves and try to work things out. But Chad and Taylor had left first to go do their own thing. And it stunned Troy and Gabriella, but Chad and Taylor had their time of their life. But for a while, before and after that one particular date, Taylor began questioning if Chad had asked her out because he wanted to or if it was just a spur of the moment thing. And for quite some time she really believed it was a spur of the moment. She had expected Chad to break up with her after the first month tops.
That didn't happen. They stayed together. Something in them just grew stronger. Even their first kiss was something magical. There was a spark there or something. But Taylor felt it. But that didn't mean it was love. It could have been the dinner they had or something. But then that wouldn't explain why the spark would continue to return every time they kissed. There had to be a more logical explanation for this. Not romance or love...just...she didn't know, just some kind of hard evidence that proved this was all a mistake.
Taylor shook her head again. She attempted to get her thoughts together and come up with a solution, her own way to prove that this was all in her head and not in her heart. First she tried to remind herself why she and Chad were planning to break up after graduation in the first place. Sure they had gotten pretty close but it was better to break up sooner than later and they wanted this to last until the end of high school. Then they could have the summer with their friends and go their separate ways. a long distance relationship would never work either. It just wasn't worth it, especially when they were both going to be so busy. Add in the difference between time zones and the two would hardly ever talk to each other. Things would fall out after the first week. That would ruin them and everything they had, getting to the point where the two wouldn't even be able to stand each other.
It led Taylor to figure out the only way to make sure Martha was wrong. All Taylor had to do was picture her life without Chad. If she could do that, then there was no love and there was nothing to worry about. Taking a deep breath, she leaned up against the wall and placed her hands on her arms. She then closed her eyes and tried to imagine her future at Yale. Taylor could easily picture fitting into a crowd that had the same interests as her, and of course after seeing the campus during her college visits it was obviously a school she could picture herself at. But there was an emptiness inside those visions. It started out vague but she could still see it. There was no sun in her mind. Just a cloudy sky turning to rain. Taylor imagined herself alone in her dorm room on a Saturday night while her roommate and friends would be out doing their thing when most Saturday nights Taylor would be with her own friends or Chad. She found it hard to focus on her vision after that and just kept trying to force Chad's face into the picture. Realizing that, Taylor tried to push those thoughts out of her head. But when she tried thinking about studying in the quietness of a library for a midterm or final, there was Chad sneaking up right behind her. When she saw herself alone on a Saturday night, there was Chad walking into her dorm to cheer her up. When the books of homework would pile on her desk, Chad would massage her shoulders and de-stress her. After that every scene at Yale she pictured herself in, there was Chad right with her. Taylor's eyes shot open and her heart began beating ten times faster than it already was.
"Unless you're dying to cry your heart out!" Ooooh oooh
"Oh my gosh..." she whispered to herself. Taylor slowly slid down the wall and sat down. As hard as it was with her prom dress, Taylor managed to pull her legs into her chest. She felt her body shivering, most likely an attempt to try and calm herself down. The one thing that she never thought would happen was happening. As much as she hated to admit it....
"I'm in love with Chad."
You keep on denying
Who you are and how you're feeling
Baby, we're not lying, hun we say ya hit the ceiling
She stayed in that position for a few moments before taking a deep breath and getting up. Taylor faced the mirror and looked at her reflection. Sure it had sort of been easy to admit it out loud - or rather quietly - but now she had to admit it to herself. She looked at her reflection in the eyes through her now tear-strained face. How could she get so worked up over this? Stupid relationship. She had to get involved with romance.
Taylor shook her head. She couldn't keep beating herself up about this. She couldn't change how she felt. And it happened, that's what mattered. And now she was standing in a bathroom instead of having the time of her life with everyone like she was supposed to. And Chad was probably worried sick about her. So the sooner she could admit this to her own face, the sooner Taylor could go back out there.
Leaning her hands against the sink, Taylor closed her eyes and looked down. "I'm in love with Chad." she whispered to herself, trying to let it sink in.
She then opened her eyes and looked right at her reflection. "Alright...so you love Chad. Now stop standing around and go back to him." Quickly washing her face, Taylor then turned on her heel and left the bathroom.
Face it like a grown-up
When ya gonna own up that ya got, got, got it bad?
Taylor left the bathroom and easily found Chad. He had left the table, looking like he was looking all over for Taylor. Poor guy must have been so worried. She walked over to him and as soon as Chad spotted her, he ran right over.
"Tay where were you? Everything ok?" Chad asked.
"Yeah, everything's fine." Taylor nodded.
Chad raised an eyebrow. he didn't seem less worried. "Are you sure? You look like you've been crying or something?"
"No, it's just...it's just the make-up I'm wearing. I think I'm allergic to it." she lied. "It made my eyes watery and itchy....I just had to go wash it off."
He seemed to have bought it. "Well you totally missed prom king and queen. It was hilarious."
"What happened?" she inquired.
Chad chuckled, "The principal said that Troy and Gabriella won the ballots. But when he couldn't find them anywhere he was asking who else wanted the crown. And Sharpay just dashed up to the stage and got the crown from him and was calling Zeke to come up through the microphone. She went all, 'Oh Zeke, Zekey! Come on. We're prom king and queen! Can you believe it?'" Chad had even made his voice sound squeaky and girlie when he imitated Sharpay.
Taylor started laughing. Chad always knew how to make her smile. Not a lot of people would have thought Taylor to be the type of girl with such a sense of humor. She had always been about school and books. But Chad brought out the more lively side of her. She enjoyed it every time. Like right now it was really helping her forget what she was even upset about in the first place. Oh yeah...stupid feelings for Chad. Blame it on the feelings.
"Yeah you really missed out." Chad said, their laughing slowly dying down.
"I guess I did." Taylor shrugged. "I sure picked a bad time to use the restroom."
"Well no more breaks tonight." Chad shook his head. "Cause here on out, it's all about us."
Taylor smiled and linked arms with Chad. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Good." Chad replied with a grin. "Now how about we go see what kinda food that is waiting for us? I'm starving."
"You're always hungry." Taylor giggled as they headed back to their table.
Whoa
No chance, no way
I won't say it, no no
Give up, give in
Check the grin, you're in love!
Once the prom was over, everyone had to head out. Too bad for the students, because so many of them were begging to stay in the gym. After dinner it was all about dancing and the make-your-own-ice-cream-bar. After all, what kind of dance would it be without classics like the Macerena and the Cha Cha Slide? Not to mention ending the night off with a good old conga line. That's exactly how the teacher's tricked the students into leaving. In the middle of Michael Jackson's "Thriller", Principal Matsui started a conga line and got the students to join in and he led the conga line out the gym doors and into the hallway. Of course as soon as the last person was out he ran back in and closed the gym doors so he and the other chaperons could start cleaning up.
Naturally, a prom night wouldn't be complete without after-prom plans. Sharpay and Ryan were taking Zeke and Kelsi to their parents' country club where they could spend the night and then let Mr. Evans' helicopter drop them off at school for dress rehearsals and opening night of the spring musical the next day. Jason was taking Martha to his house to meet the family for some kind of family game night. Chad drove Taylor in his car to a hotel where they'd spend the night. Taylor didn't know which hotel they were staying at, exactly, but they had originally planned on going there with Troy and Gabriella. So what they ended up doing on the ride there was listening to some of Troy's and Gabriella's favorite songs. After a few songs from Troy's favorite radio station, Taylor came across an old Disney Classics CD in Chad's glove compartment and put on the love songs from it, knowing that would be exactly what Gabriella would want to hear.
Once arriving at the hotel, Chad parked the car and let Taylor out of the passenger's side. They then headed into the lobby to check in and get their room keys. They each did have a bad of clothes for the next day, but Chad claimed he was too tired to carry them in and said he'd get them in the morning after breakfast. But from what Taylor could see on the outside of the hotel, it wasn't cheap. Quirking an eyebrow at its fanciness, she then turned to Chad.
"This looks like it cost a fortune."
Chad shrugged his shoulders in response. "Nah, not really. I went in on it with Troy when we still planned on doing the double date thing."
"Still, this sure isn't the Holiday Inn I thought you guys were talking about. Chad, this is one of the most expensive hotels in Albuquerque." Taylor replied.
"Second most expensive. The most expensive was too fancy. We're here to have a nice night, not to blow our life savings." he said.
"All I'm saying is that you didn't need to go all out on one night, whether it's just us or with our friends." Taylor stated.
Chad stopped in front of the doors and turned to Taylor. "If there was ever a night to make one day right, that'd be tonight."
She raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"
Chad sighed, trying to figure out for a moment how to explain this. He wasn't exactly the best when it came to having a nice night out. He'd crack jokes, he didn't have the best table manners.... Chad knew all he didn't know was how to say it in words to his own girlfriend. who was he kidding, he couldn't even figure out how to say it to his own mother. And she was the one who knew about all of Chad's bad habits from day one.
"We haven't exactly gone on the best dates." he started. "When we first started we either had to walk everywhere or take the bus because I didn't have a car or my license. and then when I finally got my license, there was still no car. Sometimes our parents even had to drive us and you know how embarrassing that was. We'd be tired before we even got to the movies or restaurant, I'd always open my mouth and say something stupid, and we never once went to a nice place. Our first date after the after-party I took you to McDonald's. It can't get any cheaper than that.I even got myself the Happy Meal."
Taylor just stared at him. She was almost speechless for a minute. Getting her thoughts together, Taylor then shook her head. "What are you trying to say?"
Chad bit his tongue, "What I'm trying to say.... Is that before graduation, especially for tonight, you deserve to have the most amazing night ever. I've never been able to give that to you. I wanted to do something right for a change. I don't care how much dough I have to spend for this one night. you're worth it."
You're doing flips, read our lips you're in love
"Chad you don't need to worry about doing fancy things or treating me to what I do or don't deserve." Taylor told him. Her voice was soft, but because of what she was saying, Chad mistook it for disappointment or frustration or something.
"I just thought that for one night it'd be nice for you to have something special for a change." he sighed.
"You shouldn't be worried about that at all." she shook her head. "Everyday with you is special to me. I know most of our dates haven't been perfect, but they don't have to be. It's what we do on them and how much fun we have together that matters to me."
Chad raised an eyebrow, clearly confused.
"It's like our date to McDonald's," Taylor explained, "sure it was cheap, crowded, and full of little kids, but before then I hadn't been to McDonald's in ages. You tried to get us as empty a space as you could so it could be just us. You offered to carry everything to the table and garbage. And so what if you got yourself a Happy Meal? You gave me the toy inside of it. I attached that toy to a magnet and haven't taken it out of my locker since. You don't need to do big romantic gestures to impress me. You don't even have to go over the top for me. It's the little things you do that matters to me."
"I just wanted to make you happy." Chad admitted.
"I am happy. I've got you." Taylor answered.
Chad smiled and looked at her. "You're totally awesome, you know."
"I know." Taylor replied not-so-modestly.
Chad chuckled, knowing she was just joking.
"So how about we go inside and order some of that room service you're so hungry for?" she suggested with a smile.
Chad grinned and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm so in."
You're way off base
I won't say it
Girl don't be proud, it's ok you're in love
No chance, no way, I won't say it, no no
The couple walked in through the lobby and were easily able to get the keys to their room. they then headed over to the elevator and took it to their floor. Taylor made sure to take in the sights as they moved along. Sure it wasn't the fanciest place they could have gone to, but it most definitely had some degree of fancy. She couldn't believe how much trouble Chad went to for her. It was going to be such a shame once they split ways. There was no way Taylor could take that. After realizing how she felt, she realized that what she had told Gabriella was a lie.
Before Gabriella decided to go to Stanford early, she had confided to Taylor her issues with Troy and what to do about it. Taylor responded by saying that there will be other guys and that Gabriella shouldn't give up her future for her first crush. But as soon as Taylor had said it, she knew she was wrong. As much as she hated to admit it, Chad had been her first crush as well. But she wasn't going to give up Yale just for him. There was no way she could. The way Taylor was beginning to look at it, it was best to see what happened between her and Chad and then see how she liked it at Yale. And if she hated it there and returned home after a while and it turned out Chad would be single then who knows, maybe they could get back together after breaking up or something. Taylor didn't know anymore. All she did know was that she didn't want this to end. As much as she wanted the night with Chad to be perfect, it didn't have to. It was perfect enough for her just to be with him and for them to have fun together.
But as far as her feelings went for him, it was probably best that he never knew.
Give up, give in
Check the grin, you're in love!
This scene won't play
I won't say I'm in love
Chad unlocked their room once they got there and held the door open for Taylor. She walked in and looked room was large with two beds, the window and balcony had a great view of the city, there was a door leading to a kitchen, and then what looked like was another door to the bathroom. The room was brightly colored and so inviting, and facing the beds was a flat screen TV. There was no way it was the presidential suite or something, but it was more than good enough for Taylor.
"This is amazing." she told Chad almost breathlessly.
Chad closed the door and walked over to her. "The two beds...well, one was gonna be for you and Gabs and Troy and I were gonna get the other one."
"Is that so?" she inquired.
"Well I didn't want those two getting any ideas while we were in the room." Chad joked.
Taylor giggled. "Gabriella would never!"
"Wanna bet?" Chad chuckled.
She playfully nudged him. "I know Gabriella wouldn't."
"How would you know? She and Troy are all the way in California." Chad grinned, slipping an arm around her.
"This coming from the guy who was so destroyed that his best friend wasn't at prom with us?" Taylor quirked an eyebrow.
"And you weren't?" he asked.
She sighed. "Of course I wished that Gabriella was with us. She didn't even tell me that she was going to Stanford. And the last time I saw her, she was just looking for friend advice and all I did was give her the same advice her mother would."
"You're practically like her big sister who happens to be the same age as her. You were just looking out for her." Chad shrugged.
"And what about you and Troy? Did he talk to you about going after her?" she asked.
"He was thinking about it, but I didn't think he'd do it." Chad admitted. He was silent for a minute before adding, "But I'm kinda glad he went."
"Are you now?" Taylor replied, a bit shocked at his response.
"Yeah." Chad nodded. He turned his head towards her. "Cause now we can do this in private as much as we want." He then leaned in and kissed her.
You're doing flips, read our lips you're in love
You're way off base
I won't say it
Taylor wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed her back. In response to that, Chad's arms snagged around her waist. There was that something between them again. Unfortunately for them they just had to be so stubborn. Chad always seemed to be, to an extent, a tough guy. A person who would rather hit a wall than show emotions. He didn't cry easily. Taylor, on the other hand, just plain kept her feelings bottled up. Sometimes even her parents were lucky enough to know how she felt about something. She always had this thought that she could handle everything on her own and that she was ready to be on her own. She didn't need anyone protecting her and whatnot. Taylor was an independent and opinionated woman; no way would she back down from something so easily. But there was always going to be a time when she stepped back and said that something was wrong and that she had to fix it. Like any other person would feel at a time like this, her heart was saying one thing but her mind was telling her something else. Some people would go with their heart and just look for happiness. Taylor was never one to follow her heart. Maybe sometimes her gut. But most of the time, she listened to her mind. She focused on facts and logic. And from the back of her mind seeping to the front, her head was telling her that she and Chad had to end this. For both of their sakes. Taylor was almost ready to pull back and speak, but as soon as she felt Chad's hand moved gently in circles around her back she just couldn't bring herself to do anything less of relaxing. Every time Taylor wanted to get out, he found a way to pull her back in. Could he maybe feel it, too?
No, there was just no way. Chad had dated plenty of girls before, so Taylor had to be no different. This just happened to be the longest relationship he was in. It didn't mean anything to him. While Taylor was unsure of what Chad really thought of their relationship, she always saw him as wasting his time. Why would Chad Danforth stick with someone so opposite of him for so long? It's been practically a whole year. Chad never even went half that long with another girl. If anything, he had to be flattering Taylor. And while her mind kept repeating facts she already know, part of Taylor just didn't want to hear it. She had to stop it; it'd be for the best. Shutting her eyes tightly and waiting for just one moment, Taylor pulled away.
Once apart, Chad could see a good arms' distance between the two of them. Taylor was moving out of reach of him. She almost looked hurt, but she had this serious look on her face. He stared at her wide-eyed and blankly, having no idea what just happened. Well, he did know what just happened. She pulled away from their kiss big time. But the question was, why?
"Tay what's the matter?" he asked.
She merely shook her head. "We have to stop." she answered, trying to keep her voice stoic.
"What are you talking about?" Chad replied.
She shook her head again. "I have to go." Taylor turned to start walking out, but Chad stepped forward, trying to stop her.
"But we were gonna spend the night here. Why do you have to...?" he started.
"Why do we have to keep doing this?" she replied, turning back to him. "Why do we keep putting off what's eventually going to happen? We can't keep acting like nothing's going to change."
Chad shook his head. "Nothing's gonna change."
"Everything is going to change." she corrected. "I'm going to Yale, Chad. Do you have any idea how far away that is? And you're staying here. We knew the deal. This lasts until high school is over and then we're over. We agreed it would be best for both of us." As nonchalant as Taylor tried to be, that didn't stop the pain inside. She just wanted to get this over with as fast as possible. She had to get through to Chad somehow.
Now Chad shook his head once more, almost looking like he was fearing the worst. "Tay what are you trying to say?"
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them and looked directly at Chad. This was going to kill her, she could already feel it. "We planned on lasting until graduation. But if we don't end it sooner then we may never be able to. Chad, you know what I'm trying to say. And what I'm trying to say is...that we have to break up now."
He kept shaking his head, refusing to believe it. There was no way he could be hearing what he thought he heard. "No.... No, Tay..."
She backed away when he tried to step forward. The look in his eyes only made the lump in her throat bigger. As much as she just wanted to run into Chad's arms, she was doing everything in her power to keep her position. Taylor just hoped that she'd be able to get out without Chad seeing her cry.
"I'm sorry." she managed to choke out, spinning towards the door to get out.
Chad was completely stunned. He looked like he was going to do anything to get her back. But instead of just begging her to stay he blurt out what some would probably say was such a stupid thing to blurt out at a time like this.
"Taylor, no.... I love you!"
Get off my case
I won't say I'm in love
No chance, no way, I won't say it, no no
Just as Taylor's hand was about to touch the doorknob, she heard Chad. She froze in her place, not believing what she a moment to digest it in, she slowly turned to face Chad.
"What did you say...?"
Chad took a deep breath and moved just a few steps closer. It almost looked like he couldn't believe what he said himself. "I said...I said I love you."
Taylor had no idea why her response was what it was about to be, but for some reason she just refused to believe him. "You can't..."
"I can and I do." he admitted.
"You don't...you can't.... This isn't supposed to happen. We're not supposed to be in love." she insisted.
"I didn't expect it to happen either. It just...it just did. You're brilliant, you're strong, beautiful great sense of humor.... And you may be stubborn and opinionated but I love how you don't take bull from anyone and you just speak your mind. All those other things that people hate about you, I didn't just learn to love about you. It's how I really feel." Chad confessed. "But I don't blame you if you don't feel the same way about me. Ok, I know you don't. That's why I never said anything sooner. Cause I knew if I did then I'd just totally wreck everything or you'd feel like you'd have to stay in this relationship for me."
"That's not true..." she started.
"If you wanna go...then you can go. But it's not gonna change how I feel. I know what you always said about long distance things not working out. And for a while I agreed with you. But look at everything we went through in the past year. If that can make us stronger then who says a long distance relationship can't do the same?" he continued, his voice softening. "i don't like being away from people I care about. I'm staying home so I can be near my family. And even if Troy decides to switch schools I'll at least know he won't be that far. But if I could I'll fly out to you every month just to see you. We don't have to give our futures up for each other. I know what I want. I want basketball. And I want you."
They looked at each other dead in the eyes, not once avoiding each others' gazes. They stood across from each other just like that. Chad was expecting her to leave, but Taylor had never expected Chad to say all of that. Her heart began beating faster and she thought she was going to start hyperventilating if this kept up.
"You're such an idiot." she breathed.
Give up, give in
Check the grin, you're in love!
This scene won't play
I won't say I'm in love
Chad opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything Taylor ran right into his arms and kissed him full-on on the lips with every ounce of passion she had. Not wasting any time, Chad wrapped his arms around her and held her as close as possible. As Taylor's arms moved around his neck, Chad began to eagerly further the kiss. Taylor easily accepted and their grip on each other tightened. Aside from only occasionally moving one hand to go through each others' hair they barely moved an inch. The two just stood there kissing and holding each other close.
This was the something that Troy and Gabriella didn't have that Chad and Taylor did. These two had pure, raw, passion. The passion Troy and Gabriella had was soft and subtle. Sure Chad and Taylor's passion could be classified as a bit rougher, but it could be seen from a mile away. If anyone walked in on Troy and Gabriella making out, they'd just stand there watching until the couple noticed. But with Chad and Taylor's session, anyone who would walk in on them would leave as soon as they saw what was happening. Everyone knew better than to disturb them.
Feeling a bit of pain from such the tight grip, Chad needed something soft to rest his arms on. He managed to move Taylor onto the bed and he got on top of her. His arms were now between her back and the bed and he instantly felt more comfortable. His body lay on a diagonal to hers so only his upper body was on top of hers. Knowing there was no stopping them until they ran out of breath now, Taylor freely moved one of her hands through Chad's hair and even went so far as to twirl the curls in her finger. Enjoying the feel of that, Chad did his best to move his hands around her back which then caused Taylor's free hand to nearly move freely around his body.
It wasn't long before they became short on breath and their movements slowed down. By the time they finally broke apart for air, a few buttons on Chad's shirt was undone and Taylor's headband had fallen out of her hair and onto the floor. Their faces were inches apart and they were breathing heavily just trying to catch their breath. Even if they could go further than they just did, they knew they wouldn't need to. Chad and Taylor could tell exactly how each other felt right now. That was all that mattered.
You're in love, you're in love
Ooooooh
"So..." Chad managed to breathe out, though they were both still in the midst of catching their breath, "...are we still together?"
Taylor was ready to jump just to answer him. Why wouldn't she? Despite all that doubt and trying not to admit how she felt, the guy she really did love felt the exact same way about her. They just kissed like they never kissed before and were so close that they didn't want to let go. But just because Taylor was Taylor, part of her felt like she needed some reassurance.
"You really think we can make the long distance thing work?"
"I know we can." he answered. "But, that's just the idiot talking." he added with a chuckle.
Taylor giggled. She shook her head and met his gaze. "But you're my idiot."
Chad smiled, knowing exactly what that meant. "So it's a yes?"
"Yes times ten to the tenth power plus another ten to the twentieth power." she answered with a warm smile.
He smirked playfully. "Your lips are saying numbers but all I hear is yes, yes, and yes." He kissed her softly on the lips, but knowing they were still a tad short on breath he made it brief before pulling away and just resting his forehead on hers.
"I love you Chad." she finally confessed, feeling so relieved to finally get it off her chest.
"I love you, too." he answered.
With their arms and bodies tangled with each others' it wasn't long before they dosed off to sleep. They just lay on the bed side by side holding onto each other, knowing they wouldn't even need the second bed. after a night of dancing, drama, realization, confession, kissing, more kissing, heartbreak, more confessions, and a make-out session, a good night's rest was well deserved. But hey, that was prom.
At least out loud
I won't say I'm in...love
Sha la la la la la...ah
Wow that was a really long chapter! And worked on over the course of about half a week, too. What's that, like three or four days? Eh, maybe more like four or five. XD This was originally going to be a one-shot but I thoguht it'd fit the song so much better. I don't even think I've written anything like this before so that's either really bad and scary or really good and successful. We'll never know! lol So anyway, I think I've finally got a weekend where I won't have a ton of homework so during that time I'm planning to work on the next chapter of B&B which is basically just the credits and finishing the picture, along with adding a song, and then it won't be too long before the final chapter of it. I'll be sure to keep you guys updaetd on that. Don't worry, I'll have plenty more stories to come soon. Expect massive amounts of Chaylor cause we all know they deserve more appreciation and we lal love them! ^^ So have a...let's see today's Wednesday so...have a happy Wednesday everyone and what will soon be a Happy Thanksgiving! C=