Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last chapter. You are so wonderful.
Black Friday continues. Again this is mostly new material. I think there might be three paragraphs from the original version in here, and they've been completely re-contextualized. All the little changes I made earlier have culminated in the necessity to rewrite this part. Blame operation get Ryan a boyfriend.
Warning: Discussions of extremely homophobic relatives. Some language will be used.
Chapter 49: Anatomy of a Mom
Still late morning New Mexico time. (It may actually be an hour or so earlier than when we last checked in with Taylor.)
After her rescue from lockup earlier that morning, Maria never actually made it to the hotel. No matter how hard Madison try to get her there. Instead, she waited for Dr. Suarez to arrive that morning. The doctor was hopeful since Gabriella initiated this trip to the hospital herself. Even after Maria told her about Gabriella punching out Lucy. Apparently, Madison left a few things out when explaining what happened to the doctor.
It would probably take them weeks to get Gabriella's medication properly adjusted this time. However, Vince being Vince, he managed to get Gabriella in a trial for a new drug to treat bipolar disorder. Maria wondered how much was donated to the hospital, but it's best that she doesn't know.
After checking on Gabriella, Dr. Suarez agreed to let her visit Gabriella for half an hour. Maria was grateful for that.
The room was stark white with nothing inside that Gabriella could hurt herself with. Gabriella was dressed in a white gown. She was asleep at the moment. Maria quickly ran her hands through her daughter's hair, noticing the new highlights for the first time. At that moment, Maria Montez began to cry.
"I'm sorry this happened, baby." She whispered between tears. "I wish I would've asked you why you weren't taking your meds instead of just being angry. I should've realized other things were going on, like you hating your doctor." Maria is really upset about missing that.
"We're not even going to talk about Mercedes. Although Madison is planning something. Actually, the whole sorority is. You made a lot of friends there. You've already got a bunch of get-well text messages, and everybody is asking Madison where to send cards and balloons." Maria explained to the sleeping Gabriella.
"You were in a car accident on your Thanksgiving break. Only Madison and Cassandra will know the truth unless you want other people to know." Mercedes was obviously in the outgroup, and she was sure Madison was planning something.
"They are good sorority sisters. Better than the one I had. I'm so mad at Lucy, but I'm madder at myself. Because I knew something wasn't right. She always had me covering for her with Jack, so I should've at least picked up on the affair." She knew the signs from the collapse of her own marriage.
"AlthoughI didn't see what she did to Troy. I'm so sorry." Maria said as she started to cry again.
Xxx
"I thought you were staying in New York?" Natasha asked as she noticed he was in line in front of her.
"Family emergency." Maria was his good mom, at a minimum, making Gabriella a stepsister. The last 24 hours were definitely a family emergency.
"I feel like that emergency was related to your mom. I saw the video." Ryan isn't even surprised. Kristin has already warned him that she's getting a lot of curious questions from their dorm mates.
"Among other things," Like Maria getting arrested for beating the hell out of Lucy.
"I promise I will not show that video to the entire floor, and I'll keep Kelsi from showing it," Natasha told him. She almost sounded genuine.
"Thank you."
"That's the least you can do," Zack remarked darkly as he pulled Ryan closer to him. Ryan can definitely get used to the strong arms.
"I don't think we've met; I am Natasha. And you are?" Natasha asked, extending her hand, but Zach didn't take it.
"My boyfriend, Zack." Even if they were not entirely at that level yet, he needed that introduction. Zack agreed because he smiled at Ryan.
"Good for you." Natasha seemed genuinely happy. "I thought it was so unfair that your mom was having you date Kelsi just for the sake of the brand. I was actually glad when you broke up with her. The pretending wasn't good for either of you." OK, that was a weird way to phrase things. Although honestly, Ryan has been wondering if that's what happened. The breakup with Cross was painful, and the homophobic slurs on his locker didn't help things. Neither did Chad's grand romantic gesture to get Taylor to go to the prom with him. Darby's suggestion to start a romantic relationship with Kelsi seemed like a lifeline at the time.
"I'm sure you were. I know you're more than just Kelsi's roommate, by the way." No point in lying now. Zack being with him made Ryan want to stop pretending it wasn't happening.
"I know that you know. The whole fake relationship wasn't good for either of you. Unlike Kelsi, you're ready to be out there completely in public. I'm forced to pretend to be the orphan roommate. You could've warned me about her parents. They're so homophobic; no wonder they made a deal with your mom." He would have if he knew. Wait, what did Natasha just say?
"What deal?" Zack asked for him because Ryan wasn't quite ready to speak yet.
"Of course, you wouldn't know. Kelsi didn't know until a really loud and horrible fight this morning where everything came out, which is why Kelsi and I are here hiding. Your mom paid them to set up you and Kelsi. She was worried that you would be one of the gays." Ryan feels like she used a different homophobic slur, but it's best he doesn't know for sure.
"I am, mostly," Ryan said, wrapping his fingers with Zack's. Ryan really wanted to kiss him, but they didn't completely talk about public displays of affection yet. Even holding hands might be pushing it. He knew Zack wasn't publicly out yet, at least with his team because they were homophobic as fuck. That's why they went someplace away from campus.
"Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if Darby did something like that because she's a bigot. However, my parents are divorcing, and I'm done with her."
"I'm sorry you had to survive that. At least I have parents that support me. Although you and Kelsi had each other." Why did Ryan feel like the more that Natasha spoke, the more confused he was. He felt like he was missing some very vital information. Or, more likely, Natasha was.
"I did until she threw my sister under the bus in front of our entire building. But I have new people in my life that have been proven really great so far." Zack didn't have to stay with him yesterday during the Gabriella chaos, but he did. Ryan adores him for that.
"Kelsey said it was because your sister was a homophobic little bitch who was horrible to both of you. Which considering your mom makes sense."
That response caused Zack to start laughing hysterically. This was good because Ryan was about to go over to Kelsi and tell her to go fuck herself. Of course, Kelsi is poisoning the well when it comes to Sharpay. It's not surprising, considering she showed the entire floor the sex tape.
"I think you need to realize that your girlfriend has been lying to you a lot, especially about Sharpay. I'm actually friends with Ryan's Sister. She's the one who set us up. That's not even to mention that her fiancé is queer himself, and she is 100% fine with it. I mean that in a rainbow flag waving ally way, not trying to make him straight way. Actually, he dated Ryan first." Zack explained, but Natasha was still giving him a strange look.
"Sexuality is a spectrum. Being with my sister doesn't suddenly make him straight. Shar was there with him yesterday when he came out to the family. So whatever Kelsi told you in that regard to Sharpay was complete bull shit." Ryan was surprised he didn't scream that part out; he was so angry at Kelsi. How were they even friends before?
"How did it go?" Zack asked.
"I told you what happened to his dad," Ryan replied because he didn't want to go into the whole story in front of Natasha.
"Oh, I'll get them chocolates Monday," Zack replied simply.
"There are some moments in life when you really want to punch somebody out," Ryan said, glaring directly at Kelsi. He was definitely having one of those moments.
"I get that. Hey, since we're going to get our order to go, why don't you go back to the car." Zack said, handing his keys over to him. Zack gets bonus points for realizing that Ryan needed to get the hell out of there.
"I think that's best," Ryan said, leaving before he walked over and punched Kelsi the hell out. Hitting Kelsi would be something Darby would do, and he never wants to be Darby.
Unfortunately, after five minutes of reading in peace a few text message updates from Amanda from the hospital, Natasha showed up beside Zack's SUV.
"You know I left to get away from both you and Kelsi," Ryan remarked darkly.
"Yes, but I think I just realize that my girlfriend has been lying to me, and I owe you an apology. Especially after your boyfriend cursed me out once you left. You were never just Kelsi's beard, were you?" Natasha asked. Seriously what the hell was Kelsi telling her?
"In hindsight, I was definitely her beard. But I never actually agreed to that." It was like the Taylor situation, except Chad was doing it subconsciously, and Ryan is 99% sure Kelsi was not. "Nor was I aware of it, but I really should've realized that was happening because the sex sucked." The look of pure shock on Natasha's face made this entire conversation worth it.
"What? Kelsi said I was her first." Natasha sputtered out.
"If she said you were the first woman she was with, that could be true. But we did have sex, bad sex, but we had sex. I think we need to compare notes but not today." Ryan did not have the energy. Again what the hell did Kelsi tell her girlfriend?
"OK, that's fair. You're obviously dealing with some heavy family stuff, and you deserve some time with your boyfriend." So very much, and hopefully, he'll get some time with Taylor too. "I'm just going to go back in there and pretend that Kelsey is just a friend. Because her parents need you and her to get back together again. They need the money from your mom. They spent much of yesterday trying to convince Kelsi to get back with you. Now we know why." Natasha explained.
"I'm not even surprised, and it will deftly never ever happen. I've moved on." And even though it's been a few days, he's definitely happier exploring things with Zack and Taylor. He can take his time and figure it out. "Also, don't refer to Darby as my mother because she was never actually a mother to me," Ryan replied, still upset.
"I understand." No, you can't. Ryan thought darkly.
"We'll talk sometime next week. But I think you need to talk to your girlfriend and maybe get her to stop lying to you because she is."
"I get that. Are you going to be OK?" Natasha asked, seeming concerned.
"I have no fucking idea. Darby working with Kelsi's family to get us together doesn't even surprise me. It's something she would do. It's all about appearances for her." Ryan answered darkly.
"So I take this to mean that you were actually dating Kelsi. This means that I may have hooked up with your girlfriend while you two were still together," Natasha remarked darkly. "Does this mean I owe you apology chocolates?"
"Yes, possibly, but I don't want to know for sure. Although get me those chocolates to be on the safe side." Ryan remarked.
"That's fair. I'll leave you to your boyfriend. Have a good trip back to New York."
"Thank you. You as well." Ryan said, genuinely meaning that.
xxxxx
At some point, Maria was pulled out of the room by Dr. Suarez. Although she doesn't entirely remember when.
"I'm not going to tell you everything will be OK. You've been here enough times to know I can't say that. However, Gabriella is here, and we've seen many promising results with the new medication. It might work better for her than the Prozac." Dr. Suarez told her, trying to sound optimistic.
"It doesn't matter if she doesn't want to take it."
"We will just have to make sure she wants to keep taking it. I will help you find a different doctor for her." Dr. Suarez offered.
"Apparently, she hated the new one at school," Maria remarked.
"I hate to say I'm not surprised. This happens. Sometimes. It's really hard to find a doctor that you click with, especially in the African-American and Latino communities."
"Gabriella's friend Madison has a list. She is a psychology major at Stanford. Maybe we can start there?" Maria suggested.
"Was she the one staying with you this morning?" Dr. Suarez asked.
"Yeah, she was also the one who called you. She came all the way from Stanford just to help Gabriella out because she knew she wasn't OK." Because she went through this last year with her sister. Thankfully they had a better outcome this time.
"I'm glad Gabriella has friends like that."
"I am too." She doesn't know how this would have gone without Madison, Ryan, and even Troy. Troy could have abandoned Gabriella entirely after the breakup, especially after she threw a lamp at him, but he didn't.
"More of them are waiting in the waiting room for you to take you home or at least to a hotel room. You really need to rest."
"I am fine. I know you won't let me see Gabriella again today, but I'd rather be close by if something happens." She doesn't want to be away from her baby.
"You won't be that far. It's not like you're going back to New York. It doesn't do Gabriella any good if you've exhausted yourself."The doctor told her. Maria doesn't feel that way.
"If I have to, I can tell the nurses to keep you out of here until you actually get some sleep." The doctor threatens.
"You wouldn't," Maria said as they walked through the door of the waiting room. Madison was there, but so were Troy and Kim and who she thinks is Ryan's text message friend Amanda. She's only seen a few pictures of the girl.
"Oh, I absolutely would. Maria, you need sleep and food. And it looks like the kids ate all the croissants." She said, pointing to the pastry box on the table that only had ½ a croissant still inside.
"Unfortunately, we did because I underestimated Madison's appetite," Kim said sheepishly.
"I haven't eaten anything since the turkey sandwich brought over by Troy's aunt last night. Before that, it was something absolutely horrible on the plane here." It was true they didn't even go down to the cafeteria to get breakfast. Maria doesn't even remember the last time she ate anything. Maybe on the second flight. First-class had decent snacks.
"We will get food on the way to the house. There are at least three or four fast-food restaurants around the hospital." Kim suggested.
"Jackie's deli is a couple of blocks away and is really good. They are open today." The doctor suggested.
"OK, we will go pick up deli food. Do you want me to come back and bring you something?" Kim said, turning to Troy.
"Oh, he's going with you." The doctor said. Troy try to argue with her, but he was shot down with a glare.
"I know you guys want to stay. But Gabriella is stable and resting. You won't be able to see her until tomorrow, and that's after we talk. So go home." The doctor pushed.
"The doctor is right. Troy has a two-year-old who I really want to meet and cuddle. I know Maria wants to meet and cuddle with Alex." Madison suggested.
"Two-year-old cuddles might be useful. Basically, what I'm recommending right now is self-care. You can't take care of anyone else if you don't take care of yourself." The doctor suggested.
"I will make sure they all rest, doctor," Amanda said from in front of her laptop.
"Good. I'll see you back here tomorrow no earlier than 8 AM. I'll call if there are any changes." With that, Maria left reluctantly, dragging Troy with her. Somebody had to be a mom to that kid. Considering how horrible Lucy was, it was going to have to be her.
Xxx
"I brought your mouthwash from your room. And your toothbrush." Chad said, walking back into the shared bathroom in the Ryan and Sharpay suite. He didn't want to really leave Taylor alone, but he wanted her things.
"Thank you," Taylor said as he helped her up from the floor. She quickly grabbed the toiletries from him.
"I'm not going to ask you if you are OK." He remarked as she used the mouthwash and toothpaste.
"That would be best. That word is not even in my vocabulary right now. My best friend is currently in the psychiatric ward because Troy's mom is an evil, selfish bitch. And she's not even the worst parent I know." Taylor lamented.
"It's not really a competition, but Zhēn seems to be the winner," Chad remarked. He found that out by reading the letters. It was helping him put the whole Charles situation into perspective.
"Because she put a hit out on Kim, who I just found out is my stepsister. This means today I found out my entire childhood was a complete fabrication." Taylor was crying again at this point. Chad quickly wrapped his arms around her.
"I kind of already knew about that," Chad said as he handed her a tissue from somewhere in the room.
"How did you find out I was adopted before I did?" Taylor seems surprised but not necessarily angry, which was a good thing.
"We found Jason crying in Sharpay's car yesterday. He was so upset about it that he will not talk to your parents. It's the reason why you caught him in Ryan's room last night sleeping with Alex. It's also why he went with Shar."
"Because he's not really ready to deal with them yet, is he?" Taylor asked as she sat on Ryan's bed.
"Not at all." Chad sat down beside her. "He's a very angry 12-year-old. He's not happy at being lied to for the last 12 years by your parents."
"Try being lied to for the last 19. Are they still my parents?" Taylor asked with tears in her eyes.
"Of course they are." Chad placed an arm around her. "As I have learned in the last few days, DNA means shit. Alexa has been a much better mother to you than Darby was to Sharpay. Mr. McKessie has been a better father to you than my father has ever been to me."
"I heard that your coming out yesterday went badly."
"Well, it went badly with Charles. Aunt Claudia, however, sent an email inviting Ryan to Sunday dinner the next time he's in town. I'm not gonna tell her that he's here right now. Apparently, she needs to interrogate my ex-boyfriend in addition to my girlfriend." It took Chad a few moments to realize he just called Ryan his ex-boyfriend.
"Oh shit!" This was the wrong time to tell Taylor about his relationship with Ryan.
"I know. So there's no need to panic. Ryan didn't want to go any further until I knew. Then we discover Gabriella was missing, and we never got to use Sharpay's gift basket. It's been a rough few days." He smirks at that, knowing exactly what was in the gift basket.
"You know, and yet you haven't thrown anything at me?" Chad asked, surprised.
"You know that I sent Ryan off on a date with Zack. I'm more open to trying something different than I thought I was. If you would've told me when it happened, I would've told you to shoot your shot and take pictures just like I'm telling Ryan with Zack right now." OK, he definitely wasn't expecting that.
"This seems like a very big departure from your destruction of Evans hall last month," Chad stated simply.
"I've been thinking a lot about that. We weren't technically dating at the time. I don't believe in labels, and I still don't. Gabriella did, which was who pushed me for us to be exclusive. In hindsight, I don't think that works when you and your significant other are in separate states." Taylor explained, still surprising him.
"Very true," Chad remarked.
"That's before factoring in incompatible orientation," Taylor remarked.
"Also, true, and I'm sorry. I should've explained things; I was just really confused for a while. Being raised by Charles didn't help anything." Over the last couple of weeks, he's been trying to examine why he made the choices he did. A lot of it comes down to fear.
"I could see how that would be problematic. You're 95% forgiven. I'm working on that last 5%." Taylor tells him.
"That seems fair." It's more than he deserves.
"Before everything fell apart downstairs, I actually told Vanessa and Alexa that I'm in an open relationship, and they were supportive. Actually, mom— Alexa just told me to negotiate ahead of time and use condoms."
"Alexa is still your mom. She was the one that raised you. Your parents love you more than anything else. They will have your back even if things are a bit more unorthodox. You won't accidentally punch your father during Thanksgiving dinner because he calls you a faggot." Chad told her darkly.
"I hate your dad. That was his reaction? I am so sorry." Taylor pulled him closer.
"Technically, I punched him before the word fell out of his mouth. I get to say that word. He doesn't."
"No, he doesn't. He doesn't get to have anything to do with you. You are too good for him." Taylor said forcefully.
"Good news, Tiffany is dumping his ass. Apparently, asking you for a blow job was a bridge too far." Chad explained.
"You told her?" OK, now Taylor sounded angry.
"I had to. Tiffany was already reluctant about Charles. I think she was halfway out the door. I did not want her to be a repeat of my mom. Unfortunately, that discussion kind of lead to things blowing up, but it was necessary." His explanation called Taylor down.
"That is kind of what happened yesterday with Gabriella." That feels like an understatement considering Lucy ended up having surgery. "At least Gabriella is in the hospital now."
"And we're all turning our attention over to making Mercedes as miserable as possible." Madison sent the screenshots to his burn phone this morning, and they all have plans for her.
"Tell me where to sign up for the conspiracy group." Now there's the woman that destroyed his dorm room.
"I will."
"How did I not realize I was adopted? I don't look like my parents, but I am Vanessa's clone. How did I not see it?" Taylor asked.
"I don't know. Sometimes we're not ready to see things. It took me a while to figure out I wasn't hetero. I just wasn't ready to see it." He was afraid to.
"I'm blaming Charles for that. I feel like there's a lot of internalized homophobia there."
"Hearing all the things he said about Aunt Mariah didn't help things. I didn't see the adultery either. He was never there. I don't think Tiffany was the only one, but I'm afraid to ask." There are some things you don't want to know.
"I can understand that. You know this was going to come out, which is why you stayed with me?" Taylor asked.
"Yes, we tried to get Ryan to stay, but you had to send him on a date."
"I'm regretting that. I just want to make sure that this boyfriend is actually sexually attracted to me. After the Darby stuff, I feel like Ryan needs both of us." Taylor explained.
"Again, I am so sorry. I really should've told you a lot of things. I feel like I owe you for a lot of my shitty behavior. So I'm here for pillow duty." Chad remarked.
"At a minimum, you owe me pillow time. You definitely should've told me about kissing Ryan. We could've had a threesome." Taylor deadpanned.
"You're serious about that?"
"I told you I would have encouraged you to be with Ryan if I knew." This new enlightened version of Taylor was anyway. He wasn't 100% sure about the Taylor of two years ago. "It would've been great until you dumped us for Sharpay."
"I think I may have been a little bit in love with Sharpay already. Which may have been why I pushed Ryan away. My first thought was Sharpay is going to kill me." He confessed. Taylor deserved the truth in this.
"Considering how shitty these last few days have been, I'm not going to ask you where I was on that list. I don't think I'll be very happy."
"You have a right not to be happy. I should have ended things after the kiss, but I was scared. I didn't realize there were other options. If I wasn't attracted to you, then that must mean I'm gay. With Charles and the other assholes on the basketball team, I couldn't deal with that. Until Ryan kissed me, I tried to tell myself that Jamie was a fluke."
"This is why you're up to 95% forgiven. I realize you had a lot going on. I wish I could've been someone you could've told all this to." Taylor lamented.
"I think we're getting there now. I've only recently been ready to tell people, but I do regret the position I put you in."
"But you're making progress. You came out yesterday, and that was not easy to do. I'm proud of you."
"I'm glad I did it, but the results were mixed. Especially because I'm running into a "no bisexuals" mindset, not that I would call myself bi. Aunt Esther said I should've kept my mouth shut since I'm now with a woman, but can I make it a black woman next time. Of course, she didn't say this to me; she said it to Tiffany and the rest of the family right after I left." Charles had at least the good sense to get Tiffany out of there before she started cursing out Aunt Esther.
"I hate your great Aunt Esther."
"So do Sharpay and Tiffany. Grandma Danforth also has some choice things to say in text message form. To my mom, although I'm expecting some really wonderful messages when I get my phone back. Personally, I'm surprised she even knows how to send a text message."
"So am I." Taylor snickered. "This is all so surreal."
"That my grandmother can curse me out in text message form? Although she sent those messages to my mom, she was really cursing her out for raising a gay. Apparently, I enjoy sucking dick because I got to play dress-up as a kid." Chad had no choice but to snicker at that.
"It is surreal we are even having this conversation. I am sitting on the bathroom floor of my new sort-of boyfriend's childhood bedroom with our mutual ex-boyfriend. Who is trying to make me feel better by retelling yesterday's coming-out disaster."
"OK, this is very surreal. Also, sorry again," Chad apologize once more.
"You are not sorry, at least not for ending up with Sharpay. Although you should've told me about our similar taste in men a while ago." Taylor joked.
"I'm sorry for not telling you all the stuff years ago. I am here for you right now. I'll be whatever you need." Chad smiled at her.
"I have a sudden urge to break things. Since I'm kind of with his son, I probably shouldn't do any damage to Mr. Evans's house." Chad smirked at her.
"Actually, Sharpay thought this could've been a possibility. There is an entire box of Darby's things that you can feel free to break. Including a hideous pink unicorn that Darby got Sharpay for her birthday when she was five." Shar really hates that unicorn.
"I feel like I should hold off on breaking that until Ryan gets back here. He has his own Darby shit he needs to work through."
"I'm sure he does. I know that you know." Ryan told him that Taylor was his confidant on this. This definitely should've told Chad earlier that the relationship was getting serious. Emotional intimacy was more important than physical intimacy.
"That she is a monster, and she hurt both him and Sharpay so much. Although you probably know more of it than I do."
"I know the specific details. I've been on a lot of therapy sessions with Sharpay working through all the stuff. Olivia wants this to become a regular occurrence, not just an emergency thing. Olivia also wants us all to do a family session." Chad explained.
"And you're now family, Mr. engaged." Taylor teased him, and he wasn't expecting that.
"I think I was in the family category before yesterday. I think we formalized it mostly to piss off Darby." He doesn't tell Taylor about the special clause on Ryan's trust fund. She doesn't need the extra pressure.
"I can't blame you there. I kind of want to send Darby a picture of Zack and me making out with Ryan."
"I'll take the picture." They both laughed at that. "Hopefully, it will be a long engagement." But Chad was worried. Because he was currently using an Evans corporate cell phone, Chad had access to Vince's schedule. There were a lot of appointments with a cardiologist in New York. There was one today that was canceled. He can't explain it, but he feels like Vince is living on a short schedule.
"Hopefully longer than it took you guys to get to this point. That would put you at a January February wedding." Taylor joked.
"We should at least make it to spring break." Really he hopes so.
"This is true. Hey, where is my nephew?" Taylor asked.
"With Vince. I felt if I turned him over to Vanessa, Alex might end up at their house. Kim is purposely trying to get Maria here with a promise of Alex cuddles." Chad explained.
"Baby cuddles are magical." Taylor got to cuddle with the baby earlier.
"So here's the plan. I'm going to grab your nephew, then we're going to go text your boyfriend and tell him to get back here."
"We can go grab the baby later. Also, I don't want to ruin Ryan's date." Taylor told him just as his phone chimed. He looked down to see he had a text message from Zack.
"Too late, it was already ruined. Per Zack, Kelsi is now standing in line behind him because her girlfriend had the good sense to lie and say that she needed to go to the bathroom. He's texting me so he won't curse her out or punch her. Zack already told Natasha off as politely as possible. Ryan's in the car because he can't deal. He hopes that they'll be back here in 20."
"Tell him to punch the witch out," Taylor replied venomously.
"You are bloodthirsty."
"Maybe a little. You can tell Ryan what's going on." Taylor said reluctantly.
"Thank you."
"Although maybe text Zack to get me a hot chocolate."
"Your wish is my command."
XXXX
"So you're actually Ryan's boyfriend?" Kelsi asked as they were now waiting for the server to finish their orders. Zack really hopes they would hurry up and finish his order so he can get away from this woman. He doesn't like liars. This may have something to do with the fact his mom lied about who his real father was for the first 10 years of his life.
"Potentially. We're seeing where things go. Plus, being in different states makes things difficult. However, that's none of your business since you decided to show a stolen tape of two of my friends to your entire floor." Zack was very angry about that. He saw what the team did to Chad regarding that thing.
"You're actually friends with Sharpay?" Kelsi asked, surprised.
"Yes, I am. Sharpay is actually the one who set me up with Ryan. I know you hate her for whatever reason, to the point that you're actually lying to your girlfriend about who Sharpay is. So I would be happy to ignore you until my coffee is ready." Zack remarked.
"Darby wants me back with Ryan. She usually gets what she wants. The woman's ruthless. Much like her daughter." Zack scoffed at that.
"Ryan doesn't give a fuck what Darby wants. Did you see YouTube last night?" Kelsi didn't respond to that question. "If you did, you would know that Darby was abusive as fuck to Sharpay. So again, Ryan doesn't give a fuck about what Darby wants, and neither do I. Now excuse me, my drinks are ready." Zach said as he grabbed his order from the counter. Even Taylor's hot chocolate was there. Thankfully that text arrived just as he was ordering.
Zack wanted to get out of there so fast that he accidentally ran into an older woman walking in. The drinks were mostly intact, but he lost Taylor's cocoa. Because he wanted to keep his boyfriend's girlfriend on his side, he would have to go back into the line and get her a new one.
"I'm so sorry," Zack said as he placed the remaining drinks on the table and ran to get some napkins.
"It's OK, Chad. Wait, you're not Chad." The older woman said, looking at him for the first time. Apparently, whoever this person is, she knows Chad well enough to realize that they sound alike. Although Chad's vocabulary is a bit more advanced than his.
"I guess you know my double," Zack remarked. Handing the napkins over to her.
"He's my nephew. The two really look alike. Your hair is almost identical right now. How do you know each other?" The woman asked as she tried to soak up the hot chocolate. Thankfully the cashier screwed up, and it wasn't that hot.
"I decided to lose the braids over Thanksgiving break. So we probably look even more like now. We're on the basketball team together. Also, I am dating his girlfriend's brother." He wanted to gauge how this woman responded.
"The infamous Ryan." Chad's aunt replied.
"Yeah, we are actually on a date until we ran into his ex. Who I was trying to get away from." Zack explained.
"Yesterday, Chad said he was staying in New York." The woman remarked.
"Family emergency." Zack used the same excuse Ryan used earlier.
"Oh, I'll have to call Chad later. Unlike the hateful members of the family, I have his current phone number. Although he probably doesn't want to speak to most of the family after what happened yesterday. It was a disaster."
"I've heard." From Ryan, but he will need to get more details from Chad later.
"Although I'm glad Chad has more friends that understand what he's going through." She smiled at him.
"I'm going to try to be there. Which aunt are you, by the way?" It would be good to give Chad a report on which family member is not evil.
"I'm Claudia Daniels-Danforth. Chad refers to me as Aunt Claudia, although technically, I am his great aunt. I might be the only family member he is still on speaking terms with." That's not good.
"I get that impression. I am Zacarías Garcia, although my friends call me Zack. I share my name with my grandfather."
"Are you related to Ximena Garcia? She was friends with my daughter when she was at U of A." Mrs. Daniels-Danforth asked.
"That would be my mom. At least I hope it's the same Ximena Garcia."
"I have a feeling that it is. It was lovely to meet you. I'm going to have to make sure Chad brings you down for Sunday dinner." He has a feeling that Chad will be bringing him along.
"I never turn down a chance to avoid the cafeteria food." Although his grandmother lived in Albuquerque, she couldn't really cook.
"No good college student would."
Xxx
The good twin: Hey, we're coming back to the house early because Kelsi is here.
Chad: I heard from Zack. He texted me to avoid punching out Kelsi.
The good twin: I am not surprised. We also found out from Natasha that Darby was paying her parents for us to be together. I wouldn't be surprised if she was actually paying Kelsi directly and was just playing dumb for the girlfriend's benefit.
The good twin: I need to get Kristen to put money on the implosion of that relationship for me. Natasha is not happy. I also found out that Kelsi tried to justify showing the sex tape by telling Natasha that Shar is a homophobic bitch.
XXXX
"I think it's best not to tell him why I need him here," Taylor said as she read the messages coming from Ryan over his shoulder. "Darby is such a fucking bitch. How did I miss this with Kelsi?" Taylor is angry at herself for missing another thing.
"It's hard to see people as the villain when you think you're the hero. Because signing us up without our consent to keep Sharpay from writing the play like she wanted was a good thing. We were all subverting the villain. Except Sharpay was never really the villain. Chances are Darby didn't want Sharpay to write the play and enlisted Kelsi's help for all we know." Chad had a point there.
"You're right." Taylor's been having to reevaluate a lot of things about high school recently. "Although I don't know why Troy didn't sign up."
"That may have been me being needy. I regret that."
'You know there is a reason why Ryan thought you were screwing Troy in high school.' Taylor thought to herself.
Xxx
Chad: Taylor is reading this over my shoulders and thinks your mom is a complete bitch. Come home and bring Zack.
Chad: We already sent him a text message asking for hot cocoa.
The good twin: I know. He just told me that he had to get back in line because he managed to spill that hot cocoa on your Aunt Claudia.
Chad: Oh, God.
Chad: That explains why I just received a text message telling me that I am bringing you and Zack to Sunday dinner at 6 PM.
The good twin: Tell her I'll be on the flight back to New York, but I'll be happy to come in December.
The good twin: Why does she want Zack and me there?
Chad: Zack, Probably because we look too much alike, and she thinks he might be a nephew. You, she probably wants to meet my ex-boyfriend. She knows about you, although you have been officially updated to full ex-boyfriend status.
The good twin: That probably makes the most sense.
Chad: In one of those 15 emails you sent me yesterday, could you have mentioned that Taylor knew you were hot boy lava springs. I accidentally let it slipped and had a minor panic attack.
The good twin: You are horrible at keeping secrets you don't want to keep.
The good twin: Hey, why is Taylor up there reading this over your shoulder? Shouldn't she still be having brunch with her mom and aunt?
Chad: Things kind of went badly, and we're currently hiding in your bedroom. How many times did you fantasize about this before?
Chad: [image one attached.
The good twin: How badly? Like somebody dying of cancer badly? Because I feel like it's more that way than what happened with our families. You will not distract me with pictures of you and her in my bed. It's obvious that Taylor was crying before you took that picture.
Chad: I'm probably going to get smacked with a pillow for telling you this, but Taylor found out that she's adopted. Jason found out yesterday because Kim figured it out and had a minor freak out when she discovered Vanessa is pregnant.
The good twin: We will be there in 20.
The good twin: And that explains why Troy couldn't make eye contact with Taylor the entire afternoon yesterday.
Xxx
"I am so sorry that it took so long," Zack said just as Ryan pressed the send button on his last message.
"It's OK. We definitely can't go back without Taylor's hot cocoa. She's going to need it." Poor Taylor. This had to be like him finding out the Darby truth.
"Why does your girlfriend need hot chocolate so badly? I feel like you know now." Ryan gave Zack a smile.
"I probably shouldn't tell you, but if you happen to look at my cell phone right now, it would be OK," Ryan said, passing his phone to Zack as he slid into the driver seat.
"That's something we're going to have to negotiate…" Zach started to say as he began to read the message.
"Fuck!" Zack exclaimed. "She really deserves that hot chocolate and a hug from you."
"So much.
"Although before driving you back to her, there's one thing I need to do."
"What's that?" Ryan asked, just as Zack leaned over to kiss him. He tasted of chocolate and coffee with notes of honey. If a kiss could be a revelation, this was definitely it.
"Sorry, I wanted to do that for two days," Zack said as they were both panting.
"Please continue," Ryan mumbled against his lips. Unfortunately, Zack turned to start the car.
"Maybe when we get to your place. If Taylor wants me there." Ryan is definitely getting another kiss from Zack.
"I'll check when we get there, although Chad did say to bring you. I went to give her a couple of minutes. Although if you want to continue our streak of weird dates, you can come to brunch tomorrow. We're inviting all of Troy's not recently arrested family to meet Alex at my house. We are there to help keep the peace." Troy is going to need them all.
"I think I'm a masochist because I am in."
"It won't be bad for us. We will just sit back and drink mimosas." Ryan explained.
"And I won't have to deal with any of your exes. Kelsi is currently glaring at us from the outdoor seating." He looked over to see Kelsey and Natasha there. Kelsi looked pissed, and Natasha seemed genuinely happy. Natasha also had her camera out.
"Although Natasha just gave me a thumbs up while we were kissing, and I heard them fighting on the way to the car." OK, Ryan couldn't resist and kissed Zach again. He just had to.
"This is definitely better than yesterday." Ryan reluctantly pulled away because he did want to see Taylor. She must be a mess right now.
"Plus, nobody ended up in the hospital this time," Zack remarked.
"Let's hope for the same for tomorrow. Although technically, Chad is my ex and will be there. Oh, and his mom just started dating Troy's dad, so it's going to be a little messy." He felt he owed it to Zack to warn him.
"I'm going to need at least two mimosas," Zack said, pulling out of the parking lot.
"I'll have a car come pick you up. You may not be able to drive once this brunch is over with." Ryan joked. He was repressing the urge to flip Kelsi off as they drove past her.
"And you didn't do that yesterday?" Zack asked.
"Because I wanted to see you." Zack has been one of the good things from this weekend. Taylor being the other.
"You are so sweet. I regret I need to pay attention to the road. Otherwise, I would kiss you again." Of course, at that moment, Ryan's phone chimed. He was surprised to see the message came from Natasha. She probably got his number from Kelsi.
xxx
Unknown number: [image one attached]
unknown number: I feel like you got the upgrade, and I got stuck with the seats in coach. Although I feel like you probably deserve the upgrade.
XXXX
"You know there's a good chance my entire floor will know I have a boyfriend when I get back. Natasha just sent me a picture of us. Are you OK with that?" He asked Zack.
"I'm not completely in the closet. My family knows, along with most of my friends. But because I'm on the U of A team, I am a public figure, and I'm definitely not out publicly. You're aware that the basketball team is filled with homophobic assholes. I've had to use Penelope as my beard a lot. Our grandmas are friends, so we've known each other since we were babies." That explains that weird friendship. "Although I wish that would've deterred her from dating the current asshole." Which, from what he gathered from Sharpay, is Malick.
"Yeah, you definitely need to help end that relationship quick. Malick did some really bad shit to my sister." Like rape her. "I think I understand your relationship with her better. Although I'm still kind of upset at her screwing Zeke while he was with my sister." Although, Ryan still wouldn't wish Malick on her, especially because she is your friend. He's going to have to ask Sharpay if he can tell Zack about Malick.
"That's OK because she was mad at Zeke for screwing your sister while with her." He can entirely see Zeke lying to both of them, but Sharpay being Sharpay, she wouldn't see it that way immediately.
"That makes sense."
"I'm OK if New York knows I'm your boyfriend. I am OK if Chad knows I'm your boyfriend along with your friends. Thankfully I'm a junior and will only have another year of this. I am hopeful that the world of graphic design will be significantly less homophobic." He hoped that for Zack too.
"I hope so too. I've heard a lot of things from Chad. He hates it there, and that's before they started calling him a cocksucker." Ryan explained.
"They are dicks. They're mad about the new guy, especially because he's not actually a freshman, thanks to all of his college prep. However, I think they're unaware of how close they are hitting thanks to 'no bisexuals.'" Zack explained.
"I'm sorry you have to put up with this."
"It's OK; it's actually better this year for me because I'm not alone."
"It's always easier when you're not alone." He rested his hand on Zack's lake.
"It really is. You're not alone, either, anymore. I'm here for you." Ryan was thankful for that.
To be continued...