Disclaimer: I don't own High School Musical or any of the characters, no matter how much I wish I did.

Summary: After graduating from East High, no one's life was the same. Their biggest worries were no longer the Twinkle Town Musical or the Basketball Championships. Sharpay became a huge Broadway star, along with her brother. Troy made it big in the NBA. When an unexpected meeting brings the two together, dark memories are revealed and a new future begins. Troypay, I promise!

Always going to be the same, just in case you were wondering

Last time:

"You go ahead; I'll meet you on the train. I have to take this call." Shrugging his shoulders, Troy slowly walked away.

"You make sure she gets there," Chad whispered in his phone. "We can't have any mistakes this time. It can't end up like...like...well, you remember. I'll see you in a few hours. It's going to go as planned." Chad hung up the phone. "I hope it goes as planned," he whispered to himself.

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They arrived in New York without an incident. Well, there weren't any broken bones. Chad was sure his friend's heart was breaking. He reasoned with himself that what he was about to do, while it may hurt more at first, will eventually fix everything.

Meanwhile, Sharpay was heading back to her penthouse apartment. Her face and hair was soaked. Her outfit was a complete mess. Ryan made a double take before realizing it was his sister standing in the doorway.

"Shar, what happened to you? You look...wet," Ryan said while suppressing a laugh.

"Go ahead, laugh. It's not my fault. The rain was pouring down. I got a taxi easily, I always do." Sharpay smiled. "The cab driver dropped me off in front and then my heel got stuck in a crack in the sideway. I tripped and fell. My umbrella broke and so did my shoe." Her fake crying, along with the story, had Ryan on the floor laughing. "Anyway, I'm home and in less than ten pieces. Did anyone call for me while I was out? I'm still waiting for those audition results."

"No, no one called. Shar, you're dripping all over the new carpet. I'm going to have to ask you to shower before I can continue talking to you. You look disgusting."

"Thanks. I was planning on showering anyway. I'm glad at least one of us finds this amusing." Before heading for the bathroom, she gave her brother one of her signature looks from East High.

Ryan sighed. "I guess some things never change."

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Dripping wet, Chad and Troy entered the hotel. They got looks from all of the hotel's guests and a few of the staff as well. The two settled in and showered.

"Troy, I want to show you something," Chad suddenly said. He looked at the watch. "If we leave now, we might make it in time."

"What? Chad, we just got here. Besides, it's raining like crazy," Troy replied.

"Actually, the rain stopped. It's beautiful outside. You've never seen New York at night anyway. Come on, already!"

Chad was right; Troy had never seen New York at night. He was always so busy, either with the NBA, his business, or thinking about the past. Troy never really liked the city anyway. It was way too crowded for him. Everyone was always in a hurry. Even though that was basically Troy's lifestyle, he still couldn't stand New York. Reluctantly, he agreed to go with Chad. Whatever it was, it seemed important.

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Sharpay stepped out of the bathroom wearing a light pink halter top and pajama bottoms. Ryan took one look at her and ordered her to change into something more presentable.

"Ryan, why do I have to get all dressed up? I'm tired. We're not going out today," Sharpay whined.

"I want to show you something. Please just come with me! If we don't leave now, we'll miss it. The rain finally stopped. JUST COME ON! Wait, no, change first. Wear that dark green tank you bought this morning and those white pants you love so much. Hurry!"

Confused, Sharpay decided to do what Ryan told her. Whatever it was, he really thought it was important. Suddenly, Ryan's phone rang.

"Huh? Yeah, we'll be right there...Great. See you in ten minutes," Ryan whispered into his phone.

Almost half an hour later, Sharpay emerged from her room. Smiling, she asked, "So, how do I look?"

"You look like you too WAY too long. Come on, Sharpay, there's something really important I need to show you," Ryan complained.

"You need to learn to grow up! Nothing could be that important that you need to whine about it. Whatever. I'm ready, now let's go. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can go back home and I can sleep."

Ryan and Sharpay headed out of their apartment. It took them another ten minutes to hail a taxi. By this time, Ryan was getting fidgety. I can't believe I talked myself into this, he began to think. I remember the first time I got called by Chad with his 'plan.' It was about two months ago, right after he had learned they had a business meeting here in New York. Ever since Gabriella...what was that word he used? Oh, yes, ever since she had passed on, well, Chad noticed Troy had been completely out of it. The only way Chad could think of helping Troy would be to get him to fall in love with Sharpay. SHARPAY! Hah, it still makes me laugh. I guess it would make sense though; Sharpay was really the only other girl Troy ever actually liked. And no matter what my sister says, I'm sure she was in love with him too. Even if it doesn't work, at least I tried. And I'll get a pretty good laugh out of it no matter what. Hmm...I wonder what really happened to Gabriella.

Sharpay's voice interrupted his thoughts. "RYAN! RYAN! We're here. Wherever here is. What is this place anyway? It's all dark and stuff. I don't like it. I don't like it at all. No one else is here. Oh, wait, there are two guys here. Let's go before the taxi driver charges us any more."

"Right, um, thanks dude. Keep the change." As they stepped out of the cab, Ryan became less sure of their plan. He looked around. For someone living in New York, I've never been here. There's nothing here but a few trees and a lot of grass. It actually looks kinda nice. You can't really see the city lights as much. Instead, you can see the stars clearly. Just like the last day at East High. Suddenly, Ryan was more excited than ever to complete the plan. Maybe this will work... "Okay, now close your eyes and I'll lead you to a big surprise," he whispered in Sharpay's ear.

"Alright, whatever you say. I hope you know that the only reason I'm doing this is because...I have nothing else to do." Before closing her eyes, Sharpay glared at Ryan one more time.

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Meanwhile, Troy was getting impatient. He glanced at his watch. "Chad, it's been almost 45 minutes since we got here. What exactly are you waiting for? You're my friend and all, but I think you're going insane."

Chad just smiled. "I've been waiting for that." He pointed to Sharpay and Ryan walking towards them.

At that same moment, Ryan whispered in Sharpay's ear. "We're here!" he said.

"Finally," Sharpay retorted. The annoyance in her voice was completely noticeable. "Now, please tell me what's going on. You made me change into something nice, get in a taxi, and walk with my eyes closed through some dark field...all for WHAT?" Then Sharpay heard two people laughing. "Who is that?" she asked out loud. But the moment she turned around, she recognized who it was. "Bolton?"

"Sharpay?" Troy responded.

Both turned to Chad and Ryan (who were laughing their heads off) and screamed, "THIS IS WHAT YOU BROUGHT ME HERE TO SEE?"

It was Troy's turn to yell. "Chad, you KNOW I hate New York City. Yet you drag me all the way out to GOD KNOWS WHERE just so I can see someone I promised myself I'd never speak to again? You know why I don't...That's it, I'm out of here."

"Ryan, you're insane, do you know that? Why on earth would you ever want me to see this...lunkhead basketball boy? Why is it so important?" Sharpay said. Instead of screaming like Troy was, she used her ice-cold voice and stare.

Troy turned around and took some of his anger out on Sharpay. "Who said I ever wanted to see you? Trust me, if I knew you were going to be here, I would've NEVER agreed to it."

Chad began to speak. "Dude, don't yell at her. This was all my idea. I just thought it would help you get over Gabriella, you know? Like, I know it sounds insane, and I completely forgot about...you know what."

"How could you forget?" Troy yelled. "It was the worst day of my life. And it was right before..." Troy broke out into sobs.

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All four knew the story very well. A few days after graduating from East High, Troy, Gabriella, Sharpay, Ryan, Zeke, Kelsey, Jason, and Taylor were at Troy's house. They all knew it was the last time they might ever see each other again. Just for laughs, they decided to play Truth or Dare. After Gabriella left (she had an interview for a summer job the next morning), it was Troy's turn.

"Troy, I dare you to...go in the closet for 7 minutes with Sharpay!" Taylor laughed. She didn't think he'd actually do it.

"Alright. But I swear nothing's going to happen. We're just going to talk," Troy said coolly. Inside, however, he was freaking out. Seven minutes in the closet with SHARPAY? Sure, she's pretty. Well, actually, she's gorgeous and everyone knows it. Her voice is just amazing. But that doesn't matter because I love Gabriella. I mean, I know we broke up in our senior year because she needed to focus on getting into colleges and she couldn't try out for the plays and stuff...but we never really stopped loving each other. He looked at Sharpay and he noticed she was just as red as he was.

Right after making eye contact with him, though, Sharpay stood up and walked over to the closet. I better do this. It's like he said, we're only going to be talking, Sharpay reasoned with herself. After all, Troy still loves Gabriella. I mean, sure, he's attractive and what girl wouldn't like Troy the singing basketball guy? Besides, if we don't...people might start talking. I can't afford having people 'talk' about us. Out loud, she said, "Come on Troy. After this, we'll get our revenge." Sharpay giggled before she could do anything about it.

In the closet, which was smaller than Troy remembered, the two started off talking. "So, Sharpay," Troy began nervously, "what are your plans?"

She smiled. See? You have nothing to worry about. "I'm going to college to study musical theater with Ryan. After we finish, I'm going to move up to New York and try out for some Broadway plays."

"That's cool. You have an amazing voice, you'll do really well."

Sharpay blushed, "Um, thanks. That's really nice of you to say, but it's really competitive. Then, again, I have a lot of experience with getting rid of competition." They both laughed. "You're going to go into the NBA, right?"

"Not yet, first I'm going to go to college so I have something to lean on."

"Yeah, that's a good idea."

Troy looked at Sharpay. She looks so innocent. I remember when her eyes were ice blue. Now they're so much deeper than that. His feet seemed to have a mind of their own because they stepped forward without him even noticing. He was too busy staring into her eyes. Sharpay didn't seem to care, though, she was looking right back into his eyes. Accidentally, Troy tripped and somehow pinned Sharpay to the wall of the closet. "Um, sorry," Troy whispered.

"It's okay," Sharpay replied. Then, he leaned in and kissed her. It started off slowly, both of them were hesitant. Then, Sharpay pulled back and they stared into each other's eyes yet again. Troy and Sharpay laughed for a moment. It was a light, nervous laugh. Wow, he's a really good kisser, Sharpay thought. Then he leaned right back in and kissed her passionately. Sharpay pulled back one more time. "What about Gabriella?" she asked.

"That's over. I promise." Troy smiled at her. Her face beamed. She's even prettier when she smiles. When she smiles and smiles for real, it's so warm and loving. I can't believe I never saw it before. This time, Sharpay leaned in first and they kissed one more time. Both fell in deeper and deeper into something they had never felt before. For both, that kiss revealed a whole new part of them they had never felt before. Troy felt passion he never had with Gabriella. Sharpay felt chemistry she hadn't had with Zeke or anyone else. In those few moments, everything the pair had ever wanted was revealed. Suddenly, the closet door opened. The two quickly pulled away and turned to see who had opened the door. It was Gabriella.

"TROY! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME? I COME BACK FOR MY SWEATER AND I FIND YOU MAKING OUT WITH SHARPAY! HOW DARE YOU!" she screamed.

Taylor gasped. "Oh my gosh, what are you doing here? Kelsey, Zeke, Jason, Chad, Ryan, and I were just grabbing some drinks. I didn't even hear you come in. You weren't supposed to see that. I just dared him to-" but then Troy cut her off.

"Gabriella, you have to be kidding me. You're the one that broke up with me. You're the one that wanted to focus more on school and college. Now you have the nerve to come here and act like I completely betrayed you. Well, guess what, I'm done with you." Sharpay smiled, secretly glad that Gabriella, her rival and best friend was out of Troy's life. Just to rub it in, she kissed him one more time. Gabriella ran out crying, and the party suddenly came to a halt. Troy realized what he had done and ran after her. Feeling defeated, Sharpay went off in a corner. Ryan walked over to talk to her.

"Sis, what was that?"

"Ryan...it was me falling in love and then getting a broken heart in the span of about 10 minutes," she sobbed.

"You're over-exaggerating. I mean, sure you and Troy kissed...but I mean that wasn't love. That was just...I don't know. But it wasn't love."

"No," she smiled for a brief moment, "it was love. I mean, at first I enjoyed it because I felt like I won for once. Gabriella and I, we're friends and competitors at the same time. When Troy kissed me the first time, I was just glad because it felt like he had picked me over her. Then, I looked in his eyes and I felt something I'd never felt before. It was so much better than the feeling I had the first time we starred in a play. I was nervous, happy, and excited all at the same time. It was so much more than I could've imagined. And then, Gabriella came back and now he's running after her. I knew I shouldn't have thought anything could've happened."

At that moment, Taylor came over. "Ryan, your cell phone."

Ryan answered, "Yeah? Seriously? Um...yeah, we'll be right over. Thank you. No, we can handle it." His eyes were wide open and began to moisten. "Shar, we have to get home right now. Mom's dead and they think our fa-...her ex-husband...came back and killed her."

END OF CHAPTER I

A/N: OOH SUSPENSE! Hope this chapter is good, I just kept writing! I'm getting kinda into the story. Anyway, please R&R!