Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last conversation. You are all fabulous.
More extremely new material. Unfortunately, we're in the part of the story where I change things so dramatically that the old version had to go in the trash. But these are good changes. This will be the case until Chapter 55. This is why the chapter count also continued to change. I still don't know what the final count is going to be for part one. I am mapping out the last group of chapters right now. But 70 chapters seems highly likely.
Chapter 48: I really should stop coming here.
XXXX
November 28, 2008, 9:45 AM MST
"OK, so which outfit should I wear?" Ryan said, holding up two outfits. He was still only wearing a towel, and Taylor appreciated the view. This new aspect of their relationship she can get used to. "Or is it really surreal to ask your sort of girlfriend what you should wear to your date with your possible boyfriend?"
"Considering I am the one telling you to go on the date, it's not surreal at all. Where did those outfits come from? They are wrinkle-free, so I doubt they came from your luggage. Also, you brought like one backpack that mostly contained your sister's gift basket." They were in such a hurry that Ryan actually texted Kristen to come to the hotel and check them out. Apparently, everything is in her dorm room, waiting for him. Taylor has a feeling that some of her things might be mixed in with his things, and he will have to ship them to her. She still can't find her blue flats.
"Because I have clothes here. They are slightly out of season but can work. Sharpay chose these outfits because she is that sister. She dropped them off this morning. Although at least one of those shirts could be Chad's because I don't remember buying it. We are the same size." Ryan explained.
"I remember that you guys used to switch shirts all the time. Especially that first time after the…" Taylor stopped talking when she realized the first time they switch shirts happened to correspond to the kiss.
"Why was Chad really wearing your shirt after that baseball game?" Because she has a feeling, it wasn't anywhere as innocent as she initially thought it was.
"When I kissed him, he freaked out and grabbed my shirt," Ryan explained. "Which is also why Gabriella thinks that we had sex and kept sending Chad pictures of us making out all day Wednesday." Taylor probably shouldn't laugh about that, but it's been an absurd few days.
"I know I should be mad, but I can't right now," Taylor explained. "There's like a lot of things I should be upset about Gabriella doing, but I'm not because she's in the hospital right now."
"I know. But at least Gabriella is in the hospital. It could be a lot worse." Ryan tells her.
"Like what happened to Madison's sister last year. She told me everything yesterday. So I know I should be grateful, but part of me wishes I didn't have to meet with my mom and Vanessa today. I should be at the hospital." Honestly, she really wants to go over to the hospital. Madison texted her a few minutes ago to let her know that Maria would meet with the medical team soon and might get to see Gabriella. Taylor wished she was there for that.
"But you are?" Ryan asked.
"Because I want to know why Jason is so mad at my parents that he's not going home. I mean, could it be something really bad like they're getting a divorce." Taylor suggested.
"I saw the video of your parent's anniversary party, and I don't think that's the case." That's when Ryan dropped his towel, and it was a very wonderful view.
"Well, I didn't think the Bolton's would implode, but here we are," Taylor said after recovering. This was too serious of a conversation to start fantasizing about what she wanted to do with a naked Ryan.
"Obviously, you didn't see the fight between Jack and Lucy at graduation. She didn't bother to show up for Troy's party the night before, and she was mad about Jack sitting with Carolyn at the ceremony." Ryan explained as he put on a fresh pair of silk boxer briefs. Pity. Although they did look silky, and she hopes she gets to take them off soon. Or, at a minimum, gets pictures of Zack taking them off.
"Who are apparently dating now, according to Troy." Taylor eventually replied. Ryan getting dressed is very distracting.
"Well, sometimes when your relationship implodes, you end up with your best friend." Ryan smiled at her.
"OK true. Go with the blue from the Chad Danforth collection even though it may be in bad taste to wear something of your ex to meet your future boyfriend." And Taylor will not think about how hot she finds Ryan wearing Chad's clothes.
"Zack knows about Chad. From Chad, actually. He might know more than I do about Chad. At least in regards to our relationship. Which is still better than Kelsi and the closet case." She should ask about when Zack knew about Ryan and Chad, but there's actually something else she wants to know about.
"So, are you ever going to tell me who the closet case was?" Taylor asked.
"You can't tell anybody else, not even Chad. No one else at school knew he is gay. I don't mean bi or pan; I mean Kinsey scale 6+ level gay. Also, I'm pretty sure he's dating Martha now as another attempt at hetero normality." Although Martha wasn't someone Taylor would call a close friend, they occasionally texted each other. She ended up going to school in Santa Fe. Because it's relatively close, she never broke up with Jason Cross. He is apparently deeper in the closet than Taylor's last boyfriend. Oh shit.
"You fucked Jason Cross? Is Martha just his beard?" Taylor asked, concerned.
"Handjobs and Blow jobs only, and I deeply regret that because he sucked at it," Ryan told her bluntly.
"Were any of the guys in our high school friend group hetero?" Taylor asked, wondering at this point.
"Zeke. Troy is probably a Kinsey one or even two because he is very comfortable with conversations about Chad's love life. He also has no trouble kissing a guy on stage. However, Troy is too in love with Kim to even think about it." Ryan remarked.
"OK, very true. After you finish dressing, you can help me figure out what to wear."
"If you don't have anything, you might be able to wear some of Sharpay's dresses. You're a little bigger than her in some areas, but she might have some things that will work." Ryan suggested.
"I might take you up on that." She said, looking at her bag, realizing that they actually left all her newly purchased stuff in New York.
Xxx
About an hour later, Albuquerque Medical Center.
"Hey, we brought croissants and danishes," Troy said as he walked into the same waiting area that he was kicked out of only a few hours earlier. By his side, Kim had one hand wrapped around his, with the other carrying a coffee tray.
"Bless you. I see coffee too." An exhausted Madison said as she took the tray from Kim and placed it on the table. She quickly grabbed a latte.
"I know what you like, and I figured that you could use Coffee," Troy remarked.
"Also, this seems like the type of day where you're running on 90% coffee and 10% croissants," Kim remarked.
"It is," Madison said before taking a very long drink from her latte. "I managed to maybe get three hours of sleep on the chairs. That only happened due to my extreme exhaustion. I don't think Maria got any. She won't go to the hotel." Madison explained.
"I was almost hopeful when I didn't see her here," Troy remarked.
"We thought that was going to happen. That's why we didn't bring Alex with us." Kim explained.
"What was the purpose of that other than a hospital not being the best place for an almost 2-year-old?" Madison asked.
"He is the bait," Kim explained. "We know Maria wants to see Alex. To do that, she's going to have to go to Sharpay's place, and hopefully, they'll take a nap together."
"He woke us up at 7 something a.m. and wouldn't fall back asleep." Troy lamented.
"I'm concerned about when you will be taking care of Alex all on your own. This is normal." Kim warned.
"Whatever new place you get for Troy next year will need a guest room for me because I don't think Troy is quite ready for 100% Alex alone time," Madison remarked.
"I would say thank you, but I feel like you don't trust me to take care of my own kid," Troy remarked, annoyed.
"It's because Alex is a handful that keeps going through nannies. I've gone through eight. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to get anybody else. I'm desperate enough to ask Jimmie if his mom is back in the nanny business." He knew that Kim didn't trust the service anymore. Troy knows that Madison has been a nanny before. It's how she survived last summer.
"I'm planning on it because Yolanda will be moving in too. BTW if you don't want to go to the hotel, there's a guestroom with your name on it as well at Ryan's house. We're going to try to reclaim our own house tonight." Kim was very adamant about that on the car ride there. She was not happy to get Kevin's report on grandma Karen and aunt Julie.
"Uncle Kevin just texted me to tell me he barely kept grandma Karen from going through your underwear door." Troy was just shaking his head but thankful for the arrival of Uncle Kevin and Aunt Liz. They might be able to keep Aunt Julie and grandma Karen under control.
"That's OK. One, I think you need to stay away from grandma Karen. Two, I want someone to be here."
"We are not letting grandma Karen run us out of our own house. That will not happen," Kim repeated what she said earlier after he read Kim the text messages from Uncle Kevin.
"It's fine. You go to the Evans house, and I will say here." That's what he and Kim agreed on.
"You shouldn't be here by yourself. You're just going to keep second-guessing your decisions." Madison told him bluntly.
"He won't be," Amanda said as she walked in through the door.
"Sorry, I had to go to the bathroom first. I think it's going to be easier for me to do my homework here anyway than at Sharpay's house." Because Amanda lived through one Taylor explosion and did not want to see another one, or at least that's what she told them earlier.
"You haven't had the chance to meet, but this is the roommate of Ryan's sister, Amanda." Troy introduced Amanda.
"I think we might have seen each other briefly as we were trying to get Gabrielle in the car yesterday," Madison remarked.
"Very briefly. But I understand what's going on. My dad is schizophrenic, so I've been here before. He's actually at a long-term care facility right now." Troy didn't know that, but it explains why Amanda volunteered to come with him. He's thankful for that and glad for the company.
"OK, it seems that you three have a logical plan, and I am down for that because I have probably gotten as much sleep as I did this time last year. I was dealing with my sister's funeral." Madison remarked darkly.
"We just have to get Maria to come with us. Where is Maria?" Kim asked.
"Private meeting with Dr. Suarez and the other doctors on the team. She's hoping she'll get to see Gabriella." Madison explained.
"I hope so too," Troy remarked. "Did the doctor say anything else?"
"Not to me because I'm not family. I only know what Maria has told me. I think it seems possible we might be able to talk to Gabriella ourselves tomorrow or Sunday at the latest. Which I hope so because we're going to have to fly back by then." Madison tells them.
"I know we're on the latest possible flight for Sunday. Yolanda is going to pick us up from the airport." Troy explained.
"Yay for you having friends with cars. Besides my Chad is probably a little annoyed at me for leaving him with Cassandra to deal with. He's trying to talk her out of her more homicidal plans." Having met Cassandra, Troy doesn't think Madison is joking about that.
"Talk to Carolyn regarding all Mercedes-related plans," Kim remarked, causing Mercedes's eyes to fall on her.
"She is Chad's mom and a lawyer. Since Mercedes was responsible for her baby boy ending up an almost porn star, she wants first blood. That woman has connections."
"I'm aware since her cop sister helped keep Gabby from getting arrested." Mercedes remarked.
"Aunt Mariah believes the rule should be bent the other way sometimes." This is why the whole family is betting on when she will finally quit. And she might be able to leave sooner if her wife had the nanny job watching the child of a recently made rich Albuquerque future philanthropist. It's something to raise with Kim. Too bad Aunt Liz lives in Santa Fe because she was also an au pair in a previous career life. Maybe they should get two nannies.
"In the meantime, have a danish."
"I will have two because I have not eaten anything since your aunt brought us sandwiches."
XXXX
A little before 11 AM MST
"Are you sure you don't want me to stay?" Ryan asked, giving her one last look as they waited for Zack to arrive. He just texted Ryan a few minutes ago, telling him to be ready.
"No. I do not want you to have to do the meet the parents thing before we even know what our relationship really is." Taylor said as she straightened up his collar.
"I think we know where things stand. Some details just have to be iron out between you and Zach." Ryan remarked.
"Which won't happen until after this date. So no more meet the parents until then." Taylor smiled at him.
"I'm sorry about yesterday. I still can't believe we ran into Vince in the airport." That was definitely an interesting car ride.
"It was necessary. Thankfully you prevented me from having breakfast with Vince this morning." Vince was so enthusiastic that it was hard to say no.
"Actually, that was Chad and Alex distracting him, but it worked. Besides, what's the point of breakfast when we're both having brunch."
"This is true." Ryan remark just as Zack pulled up in the driveway. If she didn't know better, she would swear it was Chad in that car.
"Your date has arrived. And somehow, your matching."
"Zack looks extra good in blue. It is entirely possible that Sharpay text messaged him."
"I could see that. Have a good date, and I expect pictures or at least snarky text messages." Taylor said before giving him a quick kiss goodbye. Unfortunately, she didn't realize that her mom and aunt were pulling up in the driveway at the same time.
However, Ryan thankfully got in the car before Her mom and Vanessa could start asking questions. Of Ryan did anyway, they had lots of questions for her.
"I thought Ryan was going to be here with you?" Aunt Vanessa asked.
"He has a date." Both women looked at her for a moment.
"OK, I'm going to go through this once. Yes, Ryan and I are now more than just friends. But we're in an open relationship. Part of this is he's also dating Zack or at least possibly dating Zack. There's a lot of Darby bullshit that must be reprogrammed. So we are navigating this together. Questions?"
"I'm a gynecologist. Nothing shocks me. Just use condoms and negotiate everything out ahead of time. I'll send you some journal articles." That's not the response she was expecting, but it shouldn't entirely surprise her.
"You're an adult, and you can make your own choices," Vanessa remarked. I'm not going to ask many questions because I am well aware of what that Darby bullshit involves." Vanessa said, opening the front door.
"Well, some of it was on YouTube last night. Those poor babies," her mom commented as she walked into the house carrying a cooler of food. Of course, they didn't get takeout; her dad probably prepared something. They rarely eat out.
"That was just the tip of the iceberg. However, I don't think Vince wants me to completely air out the family's dirty laundry." Thankfully Vince was not in the living room at the moment. Chad promised to move him upstairs.
"Ryan and Sharpay will let people know, although the YouTube video is going to hurt things." Ryan already had to block a few people this morning for asking inappropriate questions, including Jason Cross. He said something not very nice about the engagement. Ryan told him to go fuck himself. Now that she knows he's Ryan's idiot ex-boyfriend, she can appreciate the animosity better. Chad was the good ex.
"Most people are focused on the engagement, thankfully," Vanessa remarked before covering her mouth, realizing what she said.
"I know, and I am happy for him." Both women were giving her that look again.
"You are?" Vanessa asked.
"Yes. I've even told Chad so, twice. He may have got me out of a possibly uncomfortable breakfast with Ryan's father this morning. I want to wait at least six more months before having another one of those." Taylor explained. She was expecting being around Chad and Sharpay to hurt, and it didn't. Not as much as Taylor thought it would anyway. She made peace with what happened, and in the long run, it was for the best.
"Let me set up. Some of this will have to be heated in the oven." Her mother lamented.
"They have a full kitchen. It's beautiful. Too bad nobody actually cooks here." Vanessa remarked. That's when Taylor remembered that her husband was Vince's number two. Vanessa has probably been here a lot.
"OK, I'm going to heat things up. Is your brother coming down to join us?" Her mom asked.
"Sharpay took Jason shopping with her." Because he didn't want to be here. "He is officially her pack mule for the weekend. Apparently, it's part of his punishment. For what I don't know other than taking Jack's cell phone." Along with sending certain emails to Troy that seriously pissed off Taylor and gave Ryan Darby flashbacks, but she's not going to mention that right now.
"As well as breaking into the cell phones and sending Troy the dreadful letters from the bitch." Vanessa added. Taylor is not even surprised Vanessa won't say that woman's name. Vanessa has no love for her husband's first wife. This is understandable, considering she tried to kill Alex.
"Troy has a right to know what Lucy was doing," Taylor argued.
"Maybe, but sometimes when you're a parent, you try to protect your kids. Sometimes it means keeping secrets." Vanessa argued.
"Maybe I can understand doing that if Troy was Alex's age. However, Troy is 18 and the father of a two-year-old. He needed to see the truth even if it hurt. Being Kim's stepmom, I'm sure you know what Lucy did to Gabriella."
"Yes. I even made a few phone calls last night to help get Maria out." That doesn't surprise Taylor. "It was horrible. It was for the best that I declined Jack's offer to go to a very Bolton Thanksgiving yesterday. Kimberly would've had to get another person out of jail last night if I was there."
"If I wasn't holding onto Gabriella, I would've punched her too. It was a mess. The only good thing she did was get Gabriella here so she could see a doctor that she actually trusts." Taylor explained.
"Is she still in the hospital?" Vanessa asked. "I didn't want to text Kim because this is all been a lot for her."
"Gabriella is going to be there a while, possibly a couple of weeks," Taylor explained. Apparently, it takes a while to get somebody's medication regulated.
"At least she'll get the help that she needs. Hopefully, Maria's job will be understanding." Taylor hopes so. She was a TV news producer. Honestly, it was a miracle she got Wednesday and Thursday off. She was supposed to be back on the job today, but things changed.
"I hope so. I just feel like an awful friend because I wasn't there when Gabriella needed me." Taylor said just as her cell phone chimed. It was Ryan with pictures of Zach. They were captioned with various emoticons, mostly flames and what may or may not be an eggplant. It's hard to tell on her phone. Ryan is probably going to get her an iPhone for Christmas even though she told him not to.
"Sorry, that was Ryan." She said, returning her phone to her pocket.
"You seem happy," Vanessa told her. Probably noticing that Taylor couldn't stop smiling.
"I am as much as I can be at the moment. I think before, I was trying to be what everybody thought I should be." Maybe she didn't need to be an academic overachiever with the perfect boyfriend. "I'm trying to figure out how to be myself."
"It's a good lesson to figure out. So are you going to be adding some New York schools to your search? The University of Manhattan is actually really great. Kim only came back here for childcare reasons." Maybe she should. She enjoyed her few days in New York.
"And she thought Troy would still be here. Even though you knew better because you were at the musical when it was announced that Troy was going to Berkeley."
"I sent Kimberly the video. It's not my fault she actually didn't watch it because of Troy issues." Vanessa remarked.
"Speaking of Troy, I actually introduced you to him at our graduation. I would not have been upset if you introduce yourself as the grandmother of his son." Taylor remarked. It would've blown everything apart, but Taylor just wished Troy had more time with Alex, even if it was just a few more months.
"It was Kim's secret to tell. It had to come out on her terms." Vanessa explained. Taylor felt like that was a bullshit excuse.
"It came out because everybody started figuring it out, especially when we saw baby Troy." Taylor retorted.
"That happens sometimes," Vanessa remarked as Taylor's mom walked back into the dining room.
"OK, the quiche is warming up in the oven, but I cheated and microwave the mini muffins." Her mom said, putting the tray on the table.
"I won't tell Dad. I miss these." Taylor quickly grabbed one. "I really didn't feel like eating back when I was here in October."
"It was a rough weekend," Vanessa remarked, grabbing a muffin.
"Very rough. Yesterday was awful, but I think overall, I might break even." Her mom doesn't say anything; she just grabs one of the muffins and eats half of it in one bite.
XXXX
A few minutes later, at the Eastside mall
"Can I please go to Toys "R" Us ?" Jason asked Sharpay as they passed by the toy store for the third time. They've already managed to get new phones for everyone who needed new phones. In addition to Party supplies for tomorrow's meet Alex party. He was currently carrying a large number of bathrobes and toiletries. At some point, they also got a new wardrobe for Gabriella's mom.
Sharpay was serious when she said he would be her pack mule. He was carrying a ridiculous amount of packages right now, and they've already made two trips to the car.
"Nope. We're picking up a present for Taylor. After that, we're going to grab lunch and head home. Chad wants something with lots of cheese." Sharpay explained.
"Why are you buying Taylor a present?" Jason asked, genuinely curious.
"I'm not buying her a present; you are. With my money, but it still coming from you." Sharpay explained, surprising Jason.
"Why?" Jason asked, confused.
"Because after your mom and Vanessa tell Taylor the truth, she is going to want reassurance that you're still her little brother, so we have to find the perfect present for that. This is something for you to give her now. You can get her something else for Christmas." Sharpay explained.
"Yeah, but what if she doesn't want me anymore? I'm kind of a brat. She could be completely done with me; I'm not her real brother." That thought has been circulating in Jason's mind since he found out the truth. What if Taylor left him.
"As the sister of a bratty younger brother, I can tell you that she never actually consider trading you in for the newer model. No matter how big of a brat you are. Although, you definitely should not have broken into Jack's phone and forward those messages to Troy. Granted, it was best that Troy learned the truth, and everybody was keeping it from him because they thought he was too young."
"I may have wanted a little vengeance on Troy and Kim for completely destroying my view of my family. And maybe I was a little angry with everyone thinking I was too young to know about Taylor." Jason was just tired of all the secrets. He thinks they are stupid. What is the point of keeping the truth from people? It will all come out eventually and sometimes in the worst way, like yesterday in the middle of Thanksgiving. That was definitely the worst way to find out the truth.
"Or that Taylor was too young to know that she was adopted," Sharpay added as they kept wandering through the Eastside mall.
"I feel like they should've told us. We could've known from the beginning. Instead of saying this is your Aunt Vanessa, it could've been this is your biological mom. Why couldn't they have done that?" Jason asked angrily.
"I don't know. That's a question for your parents." Sharpay told him.
"I don't feel like talking to them right now." Chad tried to get him to talk to his dad yesterday, and he refused. Then Jason started crying, which is how he ended up falling asleep, cuddled against Alex.
"I get that you're upset, and you have the right to feel that way. But I feel like the secret came out of a place of protection."
"That doesn't mean that it doesn't hurt me because it does. Who were they trying to protect themselves or me?" Jason asked.
"Probably Taylor. I've kept a lot of secrets to protect other people." Sharpay remarked
"Like your mom abusing you? I saw the YouTube engagement video." Jason pointed out.
"That was just the tip. But it's true my mom abuse me for a long time. She started hitting me when I was five years old, and I kept quiet about it. No one knew but Kim. Not Ryan because she would hurt him too, and I couldn't risk Ryan getting hurt. I had to protect him. I know he's mad at me still. It's obvious. He's talked to Chad a lot more than he's talked to me since he found out the truth. He's trying to act like it's no big deal. So I might be getting something for him to prove that he's still my brother." Sharpay explained.
"So that's why we're picking out jewelry?" Jason asked, now realizing they were in front of a high-end jewelry store.
"Exactly. So sibling charm bracelet or sibling locket?" Sharpay suggested.
"Locket," Jason replied after thinking about it for a few moments. "What about you?"
"Charm bracelet. Darby wouldn't let him have one; they were always too effeminate." Sharpay remarked darkly.
"Is she aware of how much pink your brother wore?" Jason deadpanned.
"Oh, that was all her. She never saw it that way because she thought we should be in the same color. Ryan took to the pink more than me. I prefer blue."
"This isn't surprising."
"Come on, let's get our presents, then we will hit up the Hickory Farms for chocolate gift baskets before getting out of here and picking up lunch for everyone," Sharpay told him.
"Don't you have more things you have to get?" Jason asked
"That's what Monday and daddy's credit card is for. Besides, I want to do some shopping with Chad as soon as he's not grounded. So there's always next weekend or after finals."
"Or tomorrow," Jason suggested.
"We have the meet Alex brunch tomorrow. I talked to Jack and Kim. Us being there is probably the easiest way to keep things from irrupting into pure chaos." Sharpay explained.
"That seems likely. Although there's always the afternoon." Jason suggested.
"Afterward, Chad and Troy have engagement ring shopping bonding time together," Sharpay said before pulling him into the shop.
Xx
"So I rescued you from quality time with your girlfriend's mom and aunt?" Zack asked as they walked into Ryan's favorite coffee shop in Albuquerque. He hasn't found any place like Sammy's coffeehouse in New York yet. Although maybe that's because he's been in classes way too much. Along with hiding at Maria's.
"Yes. Although some part of me feels like I need to be there. Like there's something that's happening that I'm not seeing." Because why would Jason be so freaked out. "But maybe I'm paranoid." Just then, Zack's phone beeped.
"Or maybe not," Zack said, reading his phone. "Your sister just text message me. Sharpay said that this needs to be a short date. We have to bring back chocolate croissants, lots of cookies, vast amounts of chocolate, and any other junk food we can find at the café. Because Taylor is going to need it." This basically tells Ryan that Sharpay knows exactly what Taylor will find out but can't tell him.
"That's not good. We talked this morning about possible that Taylor's parents could be breaking something very bad to her. It must be something bad because why else would her little brother be hiding in my old room last night?" He shouldn't have left.
"And yet you still came for coffee with me?" Zach asked.
"Taylor can be very persuasive."
"Oh, I'm sure of that," Zack smirked at him. "I saw that kiss."
"Well, maybe you can do your own version in the car later. I'm also here because I want to spend time with you." That made Zack's smile even brighter. Ryan loves that smile.
"That's good to know. I like spending time with you. However, I wouldn't be upset if you wanted to make this a to-go order." Ryan was just about to tell Zach that they would stay here and find the table. Then, unfortunately, Kelsi and Natasha walked in through the front door of the café.
"Fuck!" Ryan mumbled under his breath. He shouldn't be surprised because the café was only a few blocks from Kelsi's house. She was the one who first took him to this place.
"OK, who is that?" Zack was worried and concerned. "You look like you want to throw up. She looks way too young to be the monster."
"You also know what Darby looks like due to yesterday's engagement video." They watched it together. It earned Ryan a hug, and he enjoyed it.
"You definitely needed a hug after that. Also, Chad has more restraint than I do because I would've punched Darby out."
"He punched out his father like an hour earlier, so I think he was trying to restrain himself. Also, his Aunt Maria was holding him back. She is a cop, and she was well aware of what would happen if he hit a rich White lady even with it being recorded." Ryan remarked darkly.
"Good for Officer Maria. Why is she still a police officer?" Zack asked.
"In addition to coming from a long line of cops, Chad says it's because she wants to be the change in the system. However, he also feels like the homophobia and racism will completely burn her out in another two years." Zack gives him a look. "Chad's aunt is a lesbian." He explained.
"Two years at most. OK, we will definitely get this order to go. Then maybe you can show me your childhood room." He remarked, most likely seeing Kelsi sit down at one of the nearby tables. Yes, he's definitely not staying here.
"I would love to show you my room. If Alex isn't sleeping in there. I got kicked out of my room by a two-year-old and Taylor's brother." Ryan explained.
"Do you really want to sleep in the room next to your sister and new fiancée? Especially because her boyfriend is your ex-boyfriend. I can tell you there loud when they're just making out." Zack remarked.
"No, not really. And I did not want to know that." It's weird; Sharpay and Chad being affectionate didn't hurt him but seeing Kelsey and Natasha made him want to throw up.
He was glad to see that Natasha wasn't with Kelsi at the table, but that was because she was now in line behind them. Which is honestly preferable to Kelsi. He only mildly dislikes Natasha because she had the good sense to apologize for the video. He is lamenting that there are 10 people in front of them in line—stupid Black Friday rush.
Xxxxx
Taylor really needs to stop coming home because bad things happen every time she steps foot in Albuquerque. The last time was the breakup, and yesterday was Gabriella's hospitalization. Today she found out that Vanessa is her biological mother. She wasn't sure how to react. Because she wasn't expecting that. It definitely explained Jason's anger.
"Taylor, I know this is a lot," Vanessa said, trying to grab Taylor's hand, but she just pulled away. She was still trying to process, and she didn't want Vanessa to touch her.
"Why didn't you tell me before? Why are you even telling me now? Jason figured it out, didn't he? And that's the only reason why I'm finding out." Taylor was practically yelling at this point.
"Actually, it was Kim. She knew I gave up a baby for adoption in 89 and put the pieces together. Apparently, we look a lot alike." They did. Too much, really, for people not related by blood. That right there should've told her that was a lie.
"And it all came out yesterday during Thanksgiving when I announced that I am pregnant again." Vanessa continued to explain.
"Congratulations." The words came out almost like a question. Like maybe she didn't just realize that Vanessa was pregnant with her biological half-sibling. That Jason wasn't her biological brother. That everything she thought about herself was a lie. Taylor felt sick. It almost felt like the room was actually spinning.
"I can't be here right now." Taylor quickly got up from the seat and started to make her way up the stairs. She almost tripped twice.
"Taylor," her mom- sorry, Alexa called after her. She wasn't really her mom, was she?
As that dark thought wandered through Taylor's head, she ran into the first bathroom she came across and empty the contents of brunch into the toilet. Quiche does not taste very well the second time. She was so busy being sick that Taylor didn't realize that the door was being open. She didn't even realize somebody else was in the room until there are arms around her supporting her keeping her from collapsing to the ground.
"It's OK," Chad whispered into her ear as he pulled her onto the carpet of the bathroom.
"It is not OK. Nothing is OK." She whispered as she started to cry.
"No, it's not," Chad whispered back as he pulled her into his chest. "That's OK. We will get there eventually."
To be continued…
The iPhone decided to play Backstreet Boys Let It Be Me while I was writing Zack and Ryan's conversation at the café. That is definitely their theme song, especially with how things played out in the story's original version. I have something different planned this time, but I'm keeping that to myself.