Chapter 13
An hour later, Sharpay had had three more drinks, and had almost won an epic game of Twister. All that stood (well, crouched, in an awkward way that was definitely going to hurt her neck tomorrow) in her way was Kelsi, who was struggling to keep her right foot on the red circle.
'Left hand green!' shouted Troy, who was so excited he threw the wheel in the air. Sharpay leaned all her weight to the right and deftly reached for a green circle. Kelsi raised the wrong hand, tried to correct it, and fell flat on her face. A cheer went up from the crowd.
'We have a NEW CHAMPION!' yelled Troy.
Sharpay jumped up and joined in the cheering. Chad turned around from where he'd been rummaging in a cupboard on the other side of the pool and came over to present her with a really dirty, ripped polka dot sash that said 'TWISTER CHAMPION'. Suddenly it was the best thing Sharpay had ever received. She let Chad put it on her even though it totally didn't match her outfit. Chad and Zeke lifted her up onto their shoulders and paraded her around the empty pool.
'Speech!' called Gabriella and soon everyone joined in the chanting.
'Speech! Speech! Speech!'
Sharpay laughed and waved her hands to quiet them.
'Thank you all for this great honour!' she said, and the crowd cheered again. 'I want to thank my pilates instructor, and my parents' financial advisor, without whom I wouldn't be here!' Everyone laughed but Ryan was shocked. Was Sharpay really joking about them going bankrupt? He never thought he'd live to see the day that Sharpay could see their bankruptcy as anything other than a tragedy. Wait, were they growing as people?
'In all seriousness,' Sharpay continued. 'When I first came here I was distraught, I thought I would never be happy again. Bontin's is so different to anything I've ever known, but you guys have made our exile bearable.'
She blushed as the crowd roared their approval, and Chad and Zeke set her down.
Ryan smiled, he felt the same way. He was glad that Sharpay had come to love this group of weirdos too.
Around 2am, the party finally started to wind down. Sharpay took a sleeping bag thrown to her by Zeke and set it down in the empty pool next to Kelsi, who was trying to discuss last minute changes to the show with her while falling asleep. The sleeping bag came from the back of an old cupboard and was probably disgusting, but Sharpay didn't care. It had been a good party, and she was really tired. On her other side, Gabriella and Troy were putting down their sleeping bags. Sharpay sighed. Lying here trying to sleep while Bontins' most nauseating couple made out was not what she had in mind. She was about to turn around and pretend this wasn't happening when she noticed someone else approaching their side of the pool. Someone who looked just like Troy, except that he had a very fake-looking moustache.
'Hi,' Trey said casually, laying out his sleeping bag next to Gabriella. 'Sorry I'm late guys, I had to fix a sink in one of the guest apartments. You know what the plumbing's like here.'
Silence rippled across the room as people realised what was happening.
'...Trey?' asked Gabriella incredulously. 'But, I thought…' she trailed off and turned to look at Troy, on her other side.
Troy looked confused, but he always did. Sharpay was so glad that she got to see this play out up close.
'Who are you?' Troy asked.
'I'm Trey,' said Trey with a big smile.
'I'm Troy,' said Troy. They shook hands over Gabriella, who looked like she was having a breakdown.
'Is this actually happening or am I just super drunk?' Kelsi whispered to Sharpay. Sharpay took a sneaky picture on her phone just in case everyone was too drunk to remember this tomorrow.
'Trey's real?!' someone yelled.
'How do you know Gabriella, she's never mentioned you before,' said Troy.
Gabriella stood up suddenly.
'Come with me,' she said. She grabbed Troy and Trey and marched them off in the direction of the changing rooms.
'Noo, I wanted to hear that conversation!' Sharpay complained.
Kelsi grinned. 'Let's go and eavesdrop,' she said.
Ryan shook his head as he watched Sharpay and Kelsi sneak after Gabriella and her two boyfriends.
'She's absolutely shameless,' he muttered.
He heard a soft laugh and turned to see who it was. Chad had laid out his sleeping bag next to Ryan without him noticing.
'My sister,' Ryan explained, blushing. 'She always has to know the gossip.'
'I don't blame her, that was weird,' Chad said.
Ryan laughed. 'Even by Bontins standards that was pretty weird.'
Everyone had got a lot quieter now that Gabriella had removed Troy and Trey from the party. Chad lay down properly, propping his head up on his hand and looking at Ryan, who was using a pool float as a pillow.
'You comfortable there?' Chad asked.
'Mm, not bad actually.' Ryan snuggled further into his sleeping bag.
'It's not like the beds here are any better,' Chad said. 'I think they might actually be made of pool floats.'
Ryan laughed. His eyes met Chad's and they both looked away.
'Hey...Ryan?' Chad said.
'Yeah?'
'You know what Sharpay said after Twister? About how she's happy here now?'
'Uh huh.'
'What about you? Do you miss your old life?'
Ryan stared at the ceiling as he thought about it. Did he? He thought about Juilliard and how he'd lost his chance to become an actor.
'Of course I do,' he said. He didn't see Chad's face fall. 'But…'
Even at Juilliard he had never really had any close friends had he? He'd been a bit of a stuck up brat, and only had Sharpay for company. He could still find a way to become a professional actor, but here at Bontin's he'd found irreplaceable friends.
'But…?' asked Chad.
Ryan turned to him and smiled. 'I'm glad I met you.'
Chad's eyes widened and Ryan blushed.
'All of you,' he amended. Was he seeing things or did Chad look a little disappointed at the addition? Probably just wishful thinking.
'Well,' Chad said, 'I think we are glad we met you too.'
Ryan smiled.
'The show would've sucked without you. And Sharpay, obviously. But like, nobody else could've taught me that dance. You're talented, man.'
'Thanks,' Ryan said. 'You're actually pretty good too. After my lessons, I mean.'
'Well maybe I pretended I was worse at it than I was,' Chad said slowly. 'Because the lessons were fun.'
Ryan's heart beat faster. 'Really?'
'No, I was really that bad.'
Ryan resisted the urge to hit him with the pool float.
'The lessons were fun though,' Chad continued. 'I liked spending time with you.'
Ryan sucked in a breath. Did Chad…? Could he…? 'I, um. I liked spending time with you, too,' he said quickly.
Their eyes met again, but this time neither of them looked away. Ryan felt himself being drawn into Chad's gaze. He could get lost in his eyes and stay there forever.
'I-' he started but he forgot what he was trying to say. When did Chad get that close?
Suddenly, there was a loud crash from outside. Some of the others started to stir around them. Chad and Ryan broke apart quickly.
'Ow!' Troy yelled from outside.
'You slept with my girlfriend!' another (very similar) voice shouted.
Taylor stood up and looked towards the window. 'Troy and Trey are fighting!' she announced.
Everyone got up excitedly and started climbing out of the pool, crowding around the windows. Chad and Ryan looked at each other.
'Come on then,' Chad said. 'I know you want to see.' He stood up and reached out a hand to Ryan, who took it.
