Chapter 5
It had been about a month since Troy and Gabriella had become official and things couldn't be better. School was out and they were enjoying their summer together and with their friends. Today they were having a barbeque at Troy's house with a couple of friends to celebrate the ending of their school year. Gabriella was waiting at her house for Taylor to arrive. Chad, Jason, Zeke, Kelsey, Ryan and Sharpay were all waiting for them at Troy's house. Gabriella had just finished putting on her clothes when she heard a knock at her door.
"Come in."
"Hey! You almost ready?" Taylor said as she walked into her room.
"Yeah, I just have to put some things in my purse and we can leave." Taylor nodded and sat down on Gabriella's bed.
"So, you and Troy are doing well?" Gabby couldn't help but smile at the mention of his name.
"Yeah, we are. I am so happy that we finally decided to become something more than friends. I have to say you were right."
"See? You need to listen to me more often."
"Yeah maybe I should. Hey I just thought of something. Wont it be weird having Sharpay and Zeke over at the same time? I mean I haven't hung out with them both at together since they broke up."
"Well that is what I thought so I asked Chad about it. He said that they still talk and are civil to each other. I guess they don't want to break the group up you know?"
"That's nice of them. I don't know if I would handle that so well."
"That's because you and Troy are different. Sharpay and Zeke, well……lets just say that was all wrong from the beginning."
"How so?"
"Sharpay, the ultimate drama queen, with laid back and "nice guy" Zeke? I am just surprised they lasted that long."
"That's not a very nice thing to say Tay."
"Well I am just saying what everyone else wont." Taylor said as she got up and fixed her hair in the mirror.
"Besides, they don't seem too broken up about it. To be honest, I think Sharpay never really cared at all and Zeke was just too awestruck to see it. And when he finally did, I guess it didn't hurt too badly. I mean I wouldn't mind being rid of her either."
"Taylor! Come on."
"What? I'm just saying……" Gabriella grabbed her purse and turned off her lamp.
"Come on. We don't want to be any later then we already are." She said as she headed towards the door.
When Gabriella and Taylor arrived, everyone was waiting for them in the back. There was a radio playing music and the grill was already cooking the food. Troy and Chad were wearing aprons that said "Kiss the cook" and were standing by the grill watching the food. Kelsey and Jason were at a huge picnic table setting up the dressings for the hotdogs and hamburgers while Sharpay and Ryan were setting up the chips and drinks.
"Hey guys!" said Taylor as she walked up to the group. Gabriella wasn't far behind.
"Where is Zeke?" asked Gabriella.
"Oh he was baking up some dessert and just had to put some finishing touches on it. He should be here any second." Said Jason.
"Oh yum I can't wait to see what he has made for us." Said Gabriella while she headed over to Troy.
"Hey there." Troy said as he pulled Gabriella into a hug.
"Oh so do I get to kiss the cook?" she said mockingly while she pointed at his apron.
"Hey don't make fun! I am in charge of your food." He said.
"Oh right sorry." She said as she kissed him lightly on the lips.
"Ok guys break it up…….let e get a look at you Gabs!" Ryan said as he rushed up to meet them. They hadn't seen each other since school ended and he was so excited to see her again. They had become close over the last year and lately things had been kind of busy for Gabriella so they didn't spend a lot of time together.
"Hey Ry! Oh I missed you!" she said as he picked her up into a fierce hug.
"I missed you too! You know all of this could be avoided if someone could pick up the phone and use it sometime." She smiled and replied,
"I know I am sorry! That is going to change."
"Oh don't worry I understand. When Shannon and I first started dating we couldn't get enough of each other."
"Oh speaking of which, when do we get to meet her?" said Kelsey.
"Actually today, she is coming over here today to meet you guys." Everyone began talking all at once about how excited they all were to meet her when Zeke showed up holding a few plates of cookies and brownies for the gang.
"Hey guys! I hope I brought enough for everyone!" Everyone rushed over to Zeke and helped him carry some of the food. They helped him set some of the plates down on the table and went back to the grill next to Troy and Chad.
"Hello Sharpay." Zeke said as he walked up to the group.
"Hi Zeke." She responded as coldly as she possibly could. Everyone sat in silence for a moment before Mr. Bolton came out with a basketball in hand.
"Hey everyone! How's the barbeque going?" he said as he made his way down to them.
"Great Mr. Bolton. Thanks for letting us come over." said Gabriella cheerfully.
"Of course Ms. Montez, it's always a pleasure seeing you. So, whose up for a game of ball?" he said to the rest of the group. All of the boys except for Ryan eagerly accepted the offer and decided to go play a game.
"Ryan you have to join, it's an uneven number." Yelled Zeke from the court.
"If he plays he gets to be on Troy's team!" Yelled Chad.
"Wow, now I really want to join." Said Ryan.
"Its ok Ryan, he won't be laughing when we kick his ass. Come on!" said Troy trying to make up for Chad's big mouth. Ryan got up to join the guys in the game while the girls sat out and watched them.
"So Gabriella how's life in paradise?" asked Sharpay.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you have the hottest boy toy in the school drooling like a puppy dog over you."
"Boy toy Sharpay?"
"You know what I mean. Not all of us could be so lucky."
"Its fine I guess."
"Fine? How could it be just fine? Troy Bolton is your boyfriend."
"Yeah, I know. It's not something that is completely out of this world."
"Yes it is. I mean you come out of nowhere, literally. You get the lead in the school play, you snag the high schools hottest guy, and you happen to be some super brain freak. Trust me, that just isn't normal." Sharpay said looking over her sunglasses. Taylor seemed to notice Gabriella's discomfort and decided to jump in.
"You know what's out of this world Sharpay? The fact that you are here, and no one even likes you all that much. And your perfume doesn't really help matters, you smell like a French whore." Kelsey tried to hold back a smirk which turned into a snort. Gabriella giggled but didn't even bother hiding it, and Taylor just sat and watched in amusement as Sharpay sat there with her mouth hanging open.
"You might want to close that; a fly could just buzz right in there." Kelsey said. It felt really to finally get Sharpay to shut the hell up.
"You know what? This sun is no good for my completion. I have to go." Said Sharpay in a hurry as she got up and gathered up her stuff.
"Hey where are you going?" Ryan yelled from the court.
"HOME." Said Sharpay as she walked into the house and out to her car. Ryan came back from the court and walked up to the girls.
"What's with her?" he asked Gabriella.
"I think she just realized this probably wasn't the place to be."
"That's too bad. Shannon isn't even here yet." He said as he shrugged his shoulders and sat down.
"How's the game going?" asked Taylor.
"I don't even think they remembered that I was playing." He said as he lay down on the grass.
"Its ok ry, you can out dance and out sing them any day." Said Gabriella cheerfully.
"Well, except for Troy of course." He said. They all giggled and sat in the sun for awhile when they heard a voice coming from inside the house.
"Hello? Am I in the right place?" said a girl carrying some bags.
"Shannon!" said Ryan as he jumped up to greet her. The guys from the court noticed and came over to the group.
"Everyone, I would like you to meet Shannon." Ryan said proudly as he grabbed the bags and helped her carry them to the table. They all came up and said their hellos. They were all talking amongst themselves when Shannon asked,
"So, did I miss anything?" all the girls laughed and pulled her over to their little sitting area while they watched the boys finish the rest of the game.
Ok guys, not a lot of Troyella fluff, just a bit of foreshadowing………once again thanks for all the awesome reviews!
