A/N: Okay, this story is kinda nearly over. I predict about seven chapters including the alternate ending, okay? but that could change in a hurry. I liked this chapter. It was quite fun to write :P Don't own HSM

Chapter 36 – Confusion

The following week was a blur for the East High Wildcats. Ms Darbus was pressuring them about their drama project, Jack Bolton was doing harder practices, getting ready for the start of the basketball season and Troy was attempting to apologise every chance he got. Gabriella, through her confusion, started blocking out everyone and only talked when the topic of conversation was steered well away from Troy. Sharpay had been going over to her house most evenings to comfort her and had, in time, come to ignore Gabriella's parents' weird and wonderful ways. Taylor was still teaching Troy how to waltz in between visiting Gabriella, doing her own drama project and preventing anyone from having a nervous breakdown.

Taylor linked arms with Sharpay as both of them strolled towards Zeke's house. After Sharpay had been talking about him non-stop, Taylor finally begged and pleaded that she went to see him. "This is going to sound really mean, but I can't wait for Gabriella to leave." She muttered, her thoughts still burning up her mind.

"Wouldn't that be worse, though?" Sharpay asked in confusion.

Taylor groaned and rested her head on her new friend's shoulder. "I don't know anymore. You know, before Gabriella came to East High, all I thought about was college and school and how much I wanted to go into politics and law. But, now…"

"Now what do you think about?" Sharpay asked softly.

Taylor looked at the ground before looking Sharpay in the eyes. "My friends…and Chad. I just wish that the world would stop spinning. So, we had more time to fix Troy and Gabriella's relationship. I mean, I just want them to be happy. And Troy said that if they got back together before she left, he would be."

Sharpay sighed and looked at Taylor. "I don't know what to say. We all pretty much want the same thing, don't we? How's everyone at school?"

Taylor shrugged. "No one knows what to do. There's so much tension. Troy wants to be around us but Gabriella doesn't want to be around Troy. No one knows who to sit with or what to say and Ms Darbus is pressuring us on the drama assignment and all the guys are stressing out over basketball because of Coach Bolton." She ranted, clearly distressed. Throughout the week, she had been the calm, mellow one, restoring serenity and comforting everyone else. But, everything had got too much and she finally broke down.

Sharpay halted their walk and hugged Taylor tightly, rubbing her back. "Honey, it's okay. Just pause for a second. Think about it. You've been helping everyone this past week but what about you?"

"I want my friends to be happy." She whimpered.

"Tay…" Sharpay said sternly, making the African-American look her in the eyes. "What do you really want?"

Taylor reminded Sharpay of a new baby: she was sobbing quietly with tears trailing down her dark skin. Her face was contorted with confusion and sorrow and Sharpay hugged her tightly. "Chad. I want Chad." She muttered, breaking from her friend and running down the sidewalk.

Sharpay sighed and – although she wanted to – refrained from running after her, knowing that the only person that could comfort her now was Chad. She sighed softly and turned to face the house that stood in front of her. She quickly rubbed her palms on her jeans, getting rid of the sweat that had gathered there. She licked her lips with nerves and felt tears well in her eyes. This was all too much. First everything to do with Troy and Gabriella and now she was nervous over a guy? That had never happened to her before! She took a deep, shaky breath and walked up the path, cursing herself for promising Taylor she'd do it today. She pushed the doorbell and looked down as she wrung her hands, wanting nothing more than to run away.

Just as she was about to retrace her steps back down the path, the door swung open, revealing Zeke in a chef's hat, flour on his face and dough covering his hands. "Sharpay? What do you want?" He asked impatiently. As much as he loved her, she had gone way too far and now he seemed reluctant to talk to her. She couldn't blame him.

"Uh…" She closed her eyes and composed herself. "Okay, Zeke, can I come in? If it's alright with you?"

Zeke nodded after a brief hesitation as he stepped aside. "Could close the door while I wash my hands?"

Sharpay closed the door but spoke hurriedly. "You don't have to. You can keep working on whatever it is you're doing." She walked into the kitchen and raised her eyebrows at the many baking trays, bowls and cake ingredients covering the counters.

He shrugged slightly. "I told you there's a bake sale."

"Ah, yes. That dreaded day when I was the worst person to be around." She said in amusement as she leaned against the wall, watching in fascination as Zeke moulded the cakes together. She had never really thought about the magic of baking. The way his hands worked effortlessly and created the most scrumptious things. He had sent her enough cakes to know the truth behind the statement. "I'm sorry." She whispered, avoiding his eyes.

He rested his wrists on the edge of the bowl and stared at her, his hands freezing their previous movements. "You're sorry? Wow. I haven't ever heard you say that."

She lifted her head to find him smiling softly at her. "You don't seem mad."

He shrugged, rolling his eyes. "I could never resist you."

She giggled, walking over to him and leaned up and kissed his cheek, leaving a print of lips embedded in the flour there. She knew that flour would be covering her mouth and chin but she didn't care. All she cared about was Zeke's forgiveness and how adorable he looked at that moment. "I want to ask you something."

He resumed his previous actions and started to mould the dough once again. "Go on."

"Will you go out with me…on a date?" She asked quietly. "Once all this drama is over, of course." She muttered at the end.

Zeke grinned and leaned down the six inches between them to kiss her chastely on the lips. "Of course. You know, I never thought the Sharpay Evans would fall in love with me!"

Sharpay looked gob-smacked. "Who said I'm in love with you?" She said in an unusually high-pitched voice.

Zeke shrugged. "No one. I was seeing what your reaction would be. And at this moment, it's telling me that it's true." He saw her uneasy expression and chuckled. "You still think that after all those cakes and near marriage proposals, I'm not in love with you?" He asked quietly.

She flushed a deep crimson and shrugged. "I don't know. But, I know that I am falling for you. So hard. I don't know why I missed you before but it's the worst mistake of my life." She snivelled as a tear leaked from her eye.

Zeke, despite his sticky hands, opened his arms and she fell towards his chest, wrapping her arms around his torso. He cautiously wrapped his arms around her shoulders, not wanting to cover her hair or clothes in dough. "Come on, Pay. Why don't you help me finish this off and then tell me all about it?"

Gabriella rolled her eyes as the doorbell rang. "Three guesses who it is." She muttered. As Carlos and Salina had gone out for the night, getting things ready for Saturday night, she was alone and had no choice but to answer the door.

She placed her pen down and trudged down the stairs, knowing that he wouldn't leave without talking to her. She pulled the door open and, as always, Troy strode into the house, walking straight the living room. "Yippee. A house alone with Troy. I wonder what's going to happen." She muttered sarcastically as she shut the door and momentarily banged her head against it. Why is he always so stubborn?

She shuffled into the living room and saw Troy lying on the couch, his arms folded behind his head. "Where's Carlos and Salina?" He questioned, furrowing his brow as he glanced around.

She shrugged, sitting awkwardly in the armchair in the corner. "They had to sort some stuff out for…Saturday. They should be home tomorrow morning."

Troy nodded as he sighed and stared at the ceiling, concentrating on getting his thoughts in a logical order. No matter how hard he tried, he had yet to make a basket since his confession and the worst part was that time was running out. With any normal couple, he could just take the ride and wait patiently until she forgave him. But, if they were in a normal relationship, they wouldn't have broken up for the reason they did. He came over like this every evening with the agreement between himself and Taylor that they both needed time with their respective partners.

"Troy?" Gabriella whispered, bringing him out of his thoughts.

Troy twisted his head to face her and smiled slightly at the sound of her voice. "What is it?"

"You hurt me." She mumbled. "I can't just forget it. I hope you understand that. I know why you did it, it's obvious, but I didn't think you'd go that far."

Troy turned his attention back to the ceiling as he sucked in a deep breath. "You want the truth? Neither did I. I guess I panicked. You weren't talking to me because of that stupid kiss! And then I didn't think."

"Yeah. You didn't." Gabriella agreed.

"I just wanted you to stay." He whispered.

Gabriella leaned back in the chair and folded her right leg over her left as she fiddled with her fingers. "I know." She said almost silently but she knew that Troy knew she said it. He had a way of reading her mind which kind of scared her at times. "I don't want to leave either."

"But, you have to." Troy finished in a mutter. They had had that same conversation everyday for the past week…except the first part about why he took her ship. He suddenly sat bolt upright, making Gabriella jump and he breathed deeply. "Damn it, Brie! I can't take it anymore. Okay? I'm sorry. How many times do I have to say it?"

Gabriella slouched further in her seat and crossed her arms. "I'll let you know when you get there." She mumbled in fear of Troy's clear annoyance. Memories of him bullying – ones that had not visited her in many weeks – flashed across the front of her mind.

Troy rolled his eyes at the comment and he scrambled to his feet. He dropped to his knees beside her and held her hands, holding them in a firm grip so she wouldn't pull away. "Come on! I've said it, what? A hundred and fifty times?"

After a moment – in which Troy was sure she wouldn't reply – she spoke while looking intently at their interlocked hands. "A hundred fifty seven."

"Think about it. Two days. That's all we've got left. Doesn't that count for something?" He pleaded.

Gabriella shrugged and finally met his gaze, attempting to ignore the evident hunger and desire that he wasn't bothering to hide. "I don't know anymore. Do I really want to be with a guy like you? A guy who just throws everything I am up in my face. Everything we had together…Do I really want that? Even if it is for two days…" She stood up, her hands slipping out of his and she turned to face him. "But, you did keep a promise. This past month will definitely last me a lifetime. Every time I think of this month, I'll remember how arrogant and selfish Earthlings actually are!" She screamed.

Troy saw that she was about to run away when he rushed to his feet and leapt to grab her waist. She struggled but that only made him hold her with a tighter grip. She finally fell back against his chest and he slowly spun her around so she was facing him. He cupped her face and looked at her desperately. "Please!" He cried.

She swallowed and allowed tears to roll down her cheeks. "What do you want me to do?" She muttered.

"I want you to follow my lead." He whispered as he leaned down and kissed her gently.

He expected her to pull back, slap him and, to put his thoughts into Chad's dictionary, kick the crap out of him. However, Gabriella hesitantly kissed back and wound her arms around his neck. She moaned inaudibly when he requested entrance and granted it immediately. His arms were wrapped tightly around her waist and his fingers softly drew small circles on her lower back.

His kisses were pure heaven. How on Earth – boy, it felt funny to think that – had she survived the last week? Impossible! She tried - she really did - to pull away but how could any girl do that? Especially an alien who was going home in two days! She gasped into his mouth as his hands caressed her thighs lovingly and she broke away, taking him momentarily off guard.

Her eyes were closed, her lips parted and her chest was heaving unnaturally. Simply beautiful to Troy. "Bedroom." She muttered into Troy's shoulders.

Okay, so Troy wasn't expecting that. He barely expected the kiss! He stood there, speechless and holding her tightly. Did she really just say that? A slap on the back of his head broke him from his thoughts. He looked down to see the young Venusian glaring up at him.

The glare answered his question.

His eyes widened in fear momentarily before he lifted her bridal style and kissed her nose affectionately before he started walking into the hallway.

She rested her head on his shoulder and buried her face into his neck, whispering four sweet words. "Make love to me."