Disclaimer: Wow. You know, sometimes I just want to be all "YEAH I OWN EVERYTHING IN THIS STORY, IT'S ALL MINE!" But… sadly, I'd be lying. Yeah. So. I own nothing. Duh.

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A/N: I loooove reviewersssss. They're like oxygen. I can't live without oxygen. So review. To… keep me alive.

To reply to a few things… I told this to Dragonskin Fool, but I'll repeat it here also. Ryan calls Sharpay "Ray" because I thought it would be a cute nickname, like Ryan started calling her that at a young age. Ry and Ray. Awww. And you know, shaRpAY. Ray. I dunno. I thought it was cute. And yes, I will indeed be continuing this story, this is the second chapter of many to come. But don't expect them all too fast… I just got excited about this chapter and wanted to get it done as fast as I could. I mean, come on, I'm 15 years old. I have a life. LOL. And to Kelly – thank you for recognizing that I use proper spelling and grammar… I take pride in knowing the difference between 'their, there, and they're...' and etc… Unlike some other people on this site.. hahaaa. And thank you for everyone else who reviewed! It's incredibly appreciated! ANYWAY. I RAMBLE. Back to the story: (this one's a long one. :D)

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Sharpay sleepily blinked her eyes open, slowly adjusting to the late-afternoon sun that was now peeking through the gray rain-clouds. She rolled over on her back, took a deep breath and sighed, rubbing her eyes a bit. Ryan was right. She really was exhausted. When is he not right, she smiled. Well, I guess thirty-five minutes or so of completely bawling your eyes out can infact tire a person out. She remembered Ryan's advice about showering next, and again, he was right. I do feel gross. Sharpay thought, wrinkling her nose as she sat up on her bed. She rubbed her face again, taking another deep breath with a groan. She managed to drag herself out of her bed and to her closet with some effort.

Sharpay dug around her many drawers, feeling frustrated that she couldn't find the item of clothing she wanted to wear. But finally after looking through seven more drawers she found exactly what she was looking for, which made her breathe a sigh of relief. They were the only pair of sweatpants she had in her entire wardrobe. They were red of course, representing her school's East High Wildcats. And she only wore them on certain occasions, like now for instance, where she didn't care what people saw her dressed like. She grabbed a pair of underwear, a sports bra, and a local college t-shirt, and walked into her spacious bathroom.

The people at school would flip a lid if they saw what I'm about to wear, she thought with a laugh as she set down her clothes on the counter. Ooh, she fake-sneered, mocking the kids at her school, Sharpay's dressed like a scrub… Oooh, it's a sign of the apocalypse. She turned on the shower and let the water run and get hot enough as she stripped of all the clothing she was wearing. She tugged at her elastic holding her ponytail together and threw it on the pile of clothes next to the sink. The large mirror was getting fogged up and Sharpay knew it was hot enough. She slid open the glass door and stepped inside, shutting it behind her carefully.

She tilted her head back and let the water soak through her hair and she let the water massage her back

"How am I going to explain myself to Ryan?" Sharpay wondered out loud. She squirted some shampoo and conditioner in to her hand and rubbed it through her hair. "I can't even explain it to myself, let alone another person." She covered her face with her hands and let the water cascade down the front of her. She sarcastically practiced how her conversation could go. Hi Ryan. Ha, yeah, so basically I'm a mental nutcase who has absolutely no friends, who completely hates life at the moment and no one would even care if I fell off the face of this earth! And there are a million other things wrong with me that I can't even begin to explain to you. So I'm not even going to TRY. She shut her eyes and resisted the urge to scream. No one understands me. No one even knows me. No one even fucking cares. She let out a whimper of frustration and rinsed out her hair hastily. "I'm such a fucking idiot," she whispered.

Sharpay made sure her hair was fully rinsed out and she turned off the faucet. She stood there and listened to the last of the water drip to the bottom of the shower before stepping out and drying off. She took her pink towel and rubbed it on her hair to make sure it was dry.

She suddenly started to get a little anxious about talking to Ryan. "Why am I nervous? It's just Ryan," she asked herself as she slipped on the comfy clothes she laid out for herself. I don't want to talk to him, she thought desperately. I can't explain it to him. I can't do it… oh god please… I can't face him! She combed through her hair quickly and looked herself over in the mirror. Her eyes were still reasonably red and a bit puffy, making it a bit obvious she had been crying, but it wasn't too noticeable. "I can't keep Ryan waiting… Here goes nothing," she said fearfully to herself when she realized she was finished with everything in the bathroom.

Sharpay's light footsteps seemed to echo down the hallway as she passed her room to go down the main marble grand staircase. She turned a corner and silently stepped through the archway. Ryan didn't hear her enter the kitchen; he was too busy searching for something in the refrigerator.

"Where are mom and dad?" Sharpay asked, her voice cracking a little, the sound echoing off the white tiled floor. Ryan was startled for a split second, and he turned his head towards his sister briefly.

"They… left a note for you," he said grimly. "They… left for Vegas for a while." He motioned towards the counter and turned back around to the fridge to keep searching for something to eat.

Sharpay dreadfully walked over and picked up the scribbled note. "Again?" she whispered, her tone also filled with pain. "They didn't even say why!" She looked the note up and down in disbelief, and she threw it back on the counter in disgust.

Ryan closed the fridge door and stayed facing it.

"Ry… are you ok?" Sharpay asked, taking a step towards him.

Back still facing her, Ryan didn't respond. Silence surrounded them in the large mansion.

Immediately, Sharpay knew something was wrong. "Ryan. What happened?" Sharpay questioned him again, voice filled with concern.

"I'm the reason why they left," he whispered. Ryan turned around to face Sharpay for the first time, and she noticed his eyes were also tear-stained and slightly blood-shot. Sharpay immediately reached out and hugged him close. "I was trying to protect you," he explained. She pulled away.

"I want to know what happened," Sharpay said firmly. Ryan nodded and the two of them walked into their designer living room.

A giant chandelier was the focal point of the room, as was the beautiful gigantic fireplace placed on the back wall. The couches, the walls, even the grand piano were all white and looked like they were brand-new. Ryan and Sharpay took a seat on the fluffy white couch in front of their flat screen plasma television. Sharpay tucked her legs underneath her and she leaned against the armrest behind her, facing Ryan. Ryan sat right next to her, one knee resting under him, and one leg left dangling off the end of the cushion, and he faced her also. He took a deep breath.

"After you fell asleep, I walked downstairs and found Mother and Father chatting and having a cup of coffee in the dining room. I—" he got choked up as he remembered what happened…

Ryan stormed down the stairs and into the dining room, interrupting his parents' intelligent conversation.

"Ryan, what in the world is on your shirt? Go change!' Veronica, his mom said, rolling her eyes.

Ryan glanced at his shoulder, which he just now noticed was wet with Sharpay's tears. He looked back at his parents with hatred in his eyes.

"Do you know what this is?" he asked calmly, pointing to the spot on his red t-shirt.

"A mess?" his dad, Marcus answered sarcastically, earning am airy laugh from the two adults.

"No, Dad!" Ryan yelled. "This is from Sharpay!" he cried, grabbing the damp spot, "These are Sharpay's tears!"

Veronica seemed unfazed. "Go change," she ordered. "That could be bad for your health... or something"

Ryan stood speechless, wondering whether or not they were joking. He stared at them, not saying a word. "Are you kidding? Y-You're actually serious? Sharpay is hurting," he said, eyes watering.

"I'll hire a therapist for her," Marcus stated quickly. "Now stop that yelling, it's giving me quite a headache."

"Why are you acting like this? It's like you don't even care! Do you hear what I'm even saying? You remember Sharpay? Your daughter? You know her? God, you two are so damn oblivious to everything that happens in this fucking house!"

"Stop that yelling, right now, young man. I'll—"

"You'll WHAT, Dad. WHAT? I don't even care at this point. If you didn't notice, since you obviously have forgotten, Sharpay is MY sister, and she is having a rough time for… god knows what, and you are telling me that you don't even care? You'll 'hire a therapist,'" he said mocking them stupidly. "Do you even love her?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course we love her—"

"If you loved her, you would have known she had been crying her heart out for the past forty minutes!"

His parents were taken aback for a moment. Stillness surrounded them, but was broken by Ryan's small sob. He clutched at the moist spot on his shirt again. "What are you trying to say, Ryan?" Marcus asked angrily.

Mood rapidly changed, Ryan now grasped at his blonde hair, trying incredibly hard not to rip it out of his head. "You two… are the WORST fucking parents in the world!" he cried. "You don't see what is going on right under your damn nose!"

"We're bad parents?" Marcus inquired haughtily, offended greatly by Ryan's statement.

"YES," Ryan answered with a shout.

Marcus stood up and took a few steps toward Ryan so they were inches away from each other. Marcus' face was beat red with anger and he shook a flinger in front of Ryan's nose.

"Listen up, boy," he started dangerously. "You and your sister should consider yourselves lucky. Most kids your age have to work and earn all the things they get. Your mother and I let you two—"

"That's where you're wrong!" Ryan said, interrupting his speech. "We don't need expensive clothes, o-or the newest gadget to 'consider ourselves lucky.' We want to be loved by our parents! Is that too much to ask from a kid? Enlighten me. Please, tell me again, out of our whole high school career, how many shows have you been to of ours?" He paused, waiting for an answer. "How many!" he shouted impatiently.

"T-Two—" Veronica stuttered.

"Two productions! Pathetic! What kind of parents don't go to their kid's school plays?" He threw his hands up in exasperation.

"I'm going up to see Sharpay." Veronica said, standing up out of her chair suddenly.

"Oh, and say what? 'Talk to me.' 'Tell me what's going on,'" he mocked again. "Like she's going to friggin tell you! You don't even know her favorite color anymore!" Ryan's voice was hoarse with fury.

"That's easy," Veronica said with a laugh. "It's pink."

"LIGHT BLUE," Ryan hollered. Veronica was hurt slightly, and she narrowed her eyes at her son.

"I'm still going up to see her."

"Don't even fucking bother. She's sleeping now. I told her she needed to rest. Not that you'd care," Ryan said, crossing his arms.

"You are way out of line, young man. Apologize for your language," Marcus shouted, getting in his face again.

"I don't think I should be the one apologizing," Ryan said in a deadly tone.

Marcus also narrowed his eyes at Ryan. He turned to Veronica. "C'mon honey. We're leaving for a bit. He needs to calm down."

"Calm down? What the hell? Oh, where are you going now, Dad? Vegas, like you did last time you ran away like a coward?"

"You know, a long vacation actually sounds like a good idea. Seems as if it'll take quite some time for all that anger to leave you anyway. V, we're leaving NOW."

Veronica hastily scribbled down a note for Sharpay and laid it on the dark green marble kitchen countertop. Marcus snatched his keys, his wallet, and two passports.

"Not suitcases for the flight? That's smart."

"We'll buy the things we need," Marcus spat as both he and Veronica threw on their coats.

"S-So, you think that when you come back, nothing happened at all? You'll just somehow 'forget' that this whole argument happened? You always run away when you're confronted about things! You can't run away from the truth! You can't avoid the fact that you SUCK at parenting!" he yelled to the retreating figures of his parents.

"SHUT UP, RYAN." Marcus yelled so loud that it seemed to echo throughout the house. He grabbed his wife's hand and started to march out the entrance doors.

Ryan looked worried for a second. "You probably woke up Sharpay." He took a quick look towards the staircase, debating whether to run up and check.

"GOOD." Marcus grabbed the large handle behind him and slammed the door with a bang that seemed to shake the entire mansion.

What did I just do? Ryan thought miserably. He had an urge to cry, but he held it in and only a lone tear fell down his left cheek. His legs couldn't hold him up anymore, and he sank to his knees. He was completely disorientated and confused. And no one was there to help.

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As Ryan finished telling the story, Sharpay sat with her hands covering her mouth, completely speechless. Ryan fiddled with his hands in his lap, as silence came over the two once again. He waited for her reaction. Thankfully, it went better than expected. Sharpay crawled over to her brother and hugged him tight.

"Ry, I know we haven't ever been that close, but… I want to be. We have to be strong," she smiled, "for each other." Ryan nodded. "But I wish I could have done something…"

"I don't know how you slept through all that racket," Ryan joked.

Sharpay rolled her eyes and smirked, glad that he was okay about the argument with their parents.

"All right, Ray. I told you my story. You tell me yours."

Sharpay went stiff and pulled away suddenly. She'd been trying to avoid that subject the entire time. Her eyes darted around the room and she twisted her hands nervously.

Noticing his sister wasn't going to say anything, he spoke up. "Ray, not just anything can make a person cry like that!"

"I… I don't know how to explain it."

"Can you please try?" Ryan asked, holding her hand.

Sharpay sighed and leaned back against the cushion of the couch, trying to put words together in her mind that made some sense.

"Basically… no one… really… knows who I am."

"Well, who are you?"

"See, I don't know! But I know I'm not what everyone sees me as at school. I'm not mean, Ryan! Not really! I've just had to keep up this image because that's what keeps me popular and well liked. Ish. I feel like a geek walking through the halls, knowing I can't say 'Hi' to anyone, but in reality, I'm popular, but I don't want to be popular, and I can't be happy if I can't be myself, but myself isn't mean which would make me—"

"Woah, woah. Okay, Ray, okay. I get it."

Sharpay took another deep breath. "And I don't have any friends, Ryan. Who goes through three years of high school without a best friend? I'm pathetic! Just a sad excuse for a person. Seriously! It's out senior year next year, usually a time where a person reflects on their memories of their high school career, and what do I have to show! NOTHING!" Sharpay ended with a yell. She swore she felt steam coming from out her ears. "There are a million other things that I can't even begin to explain… but I'm so fucking messed up, Ryan. I really am."

"No you aren't Ray. Please listen to me, you aren't!"

"Don't lie to me, Ryan!" Sharpay cried.

"I'm not lying—" Ryan stopped mid-sentence and suddenly snatched Sharpay's right wrist. She tried jerking it away, but he kept his grip. "Sharpay, what is this!" There were two faint but fresh scar lines that were visible. Sharpay's heart dropped to the pit of her stomach.

"Nothing—" Sharpay answered too quickly.

"Sharpay! I know exactly what this is, don't fucking lie to me. Do you cut?"

"No!" she sobbed.

"Then what the hell is that?"

"Nothing! I—"

"No, it's not nothing, Sharpay. Don't act like it's nothing. Now either you tell me voluntarily, or I'm going to force it out of you!"

Sharpay grabbed her wrist and started to cry. "I-I just tried it once to see how it felt, a-and I only did it one time after that, b-but I'll never do it again… I never wanted to die, Ryan… Honest." She sobbed harder.

Ryan was unbelievably upset, his lips were in a thin line, and he had his chin in his hand, shaking his head in denial. At first he couldn't speak at all. Sharpay wanted to crawl up into a ball. "Why would you do something like that, Sharpay?"

"I don't know. I was confused, all right?" she cried. "I don't know what I was thinking, okay? I was wrong. I did something stupid… again. I didn't have anyone to talk to. No one understands," she sobbed.

"Understood."

"What?" Sharpay asked, slightly confused. She sniffled lightly.

"No one understood. Past tense. I'm here now." Ryan said softly, and Sharpay finally got the courage to look him in the eye again.

"Don't hate me," Sharpay struggled to say through her tears.

"I could never hate you. Just never ever do something like that again." He touched her wrist and traced the scars with his thumb. "If you need help, please, please, talk to me from now on. Okay?" He closed his eyes tight and hugged her again. "I can't imagine what I'd do without you, Ray."

"Me either," Sharpay choked out. Ryan rubbed her back and looked into her brown eyes for a moment.

"That's a really serious matter, Sharpay."

"I know! I said I'd never do it again, and I seriously mean it! Please trust me!" she said frantically.

"Okay. I do, I do. I trust you. But anyway… are you feeling a little bit better now?"

"Oh, if you're talking about the ginormous weight that I feel was just lifted from my shoulders, then I am feeling a tad bit better, yeah."

"There's the Sharpay Evans I know," Ryan smiled. "Let's make a deal."

"All right. I'm listening."

"No. More. Secrets." He said with some emphasis. "I want to help you, Sharpay. I really do. Is that acceptable?"

"Yes. Okay… I like that plan."

"Pinkie swear?" He stuck out his hand, pinkie raised, and Sharpay lifted her opposite hand up and linked hers with his.

"Pinkie swear." They shook on it, and both twins sighed and leaned back on the couch. Sharpay spaced out, staring at something interesting outside on the patio, and Ryan was looking at her with a puzzled expression on his face. For a few minutes, Sharpay didn't notice, but she blinked herself out of her small reverie and met Ryan's gaze.

"What," she laughed.

"Nothin," he drawled.

"There has to be somethin'. A lot of things kinda just spilled out at once, Ryan. There has to be something brewing in your mind."

"Well I was just thinking," Ryan said, changing his position so he was facing Sharpay more, "I was yelling at mom and dad about how they couldn't see what was happening under their noses, when in reality, I didn't know what was going on under mine either."

Sharpay raised her eyebrow and nodded. "Ironic."

"Very."

Frowning once more, Sharpay looked around the room. "I need something."

"Like… what?" Ryan asked.

"I need some… ice-cream," she smirked and pulled her knees up to her chest. Ryan chuckled and stood up, walking into the kitchen.

"Sound like a good idea indeed. What kind would you like, m'dear?" He rummaged around the freezer.

"Ew. Never call me that again," she laughed.

"'K, Ray," he grinned. Sharpay's eyes twinkled brightly at her nickname.

"Chocolate." She reached over and grabbed the remote that was on the glass coffee table in front of her and turned the television on.

"Perfect choice. We're in business," he said, taking the half-eaten container out of the freezer. It was just the perfect amount for two people. He grabbed two spoons on the way back to the couch. Plopping down next to his sister, he set the tub between the two of them and handed Sharpay a spoon. They giggled as they dove into the frozen delight that lay before them. Between bites, Ryan couldn't help but sneak a glance at Sharpay's scarred wrist. He tried making it unnoticeable, but Sharpay become aware of it before long.

"Things won't ever be the same, will it, Ry?" she asked quietly, avoiding his eyes and she took another bite.

"No," he replied truthfully. Sharpay toyed with the last of the ice-cream in the container, noticeably ashamed. "Things have changed for the better, Sharpay."

She looked up and they exchanged a smile, and the two finished up the tub of chocolate fast. It wasn't long before Ryan and Sharpay both lay passed out on the couch, peacefully resting after an exhausting day. The lights from the television were lightly flickering off their bodies, and their spoons were dangling from their hands lazily. The phone rang suddenly, but the twins were fast asleep, and didn't hear a thing. The answering machine picked it up after a few rings.

"H-Hey Sharpay and Ryan… It's Troy. If you can, call me back when you get the chance… that'd be great. Talk to you soon." The machine beeped and shut off with a quiet click.

A/N - Please don't let me resort to begging. But I will anyway. PLEASE REVIEWWWWWWW. cries