A/N: Hello everybody! I'm trying to update faster... if you can call that faster. I might start updating maybe once in five days, depending on how much I want the chapter to be, how much homework I have and such. My cold is almost all gone, thanks for the concern! Anyway, thanks for the awesome reviews from the last chapter! I love you guys!
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Thanks you guys! Anyway, here's the 20th chapter! This is the longest story I've ever written! Wow, 20 chapters. My other stories were only, what? 16? 18? Let me stop talking now...
This Is War
Chapter 20: What A Mess
"Right here's fine, thank you." Ryan said to the cab driver as he and Sharpay got out of the cab in front of Gabriella's Albuquerque home. The cab driver rolled down his window and Sharpay gave him the cash. The cab driver helped them with their luggage, struggling a little with Sharpay's.
"I got it thanks." Sharpay said as she took her luggage, helping out the driver. He got back in his cab and soon he was off.
"You sure this is her house?" Sharpay asked.
"Shar. You really think I would forget Gabriella's house?" Ryan said, looking at Sharpay. She just shrugged. They both walked up to the front door. Ryan took off his hat, put it gently on top of his bag and rang the doorbell.
A young woman, preferably at her twenties, opened the door. "How can I help you?" She asked courteously.
"Hi, um… we're looking for Ms. Gabriella Montez, is she here?" Ryan asked.
"Oh, Ms. Montez isn't here right now. I'm Lucinda, her mother's caretaker and they just went to the hospital for Mrs. Montez's operation. Can I take a message? Shall I tell her you stopped by?"
"Um… no thank you, but uh… did Gabriella bring home two twin girls with blonde hair, blue-greenish eyes? They're seven-years-old." Ryan asked.
"Um… not that I know of, no." Lucinda informed them, remembering that Gabriella told her not to tell anybody about the twins. Especially Ryan or Sharpay.
"Okay, thank you very much." Ryan said politely. Lucinda smiled and closed the door. Sharpay and Ryan both sighed and turned around. As Ryan turned around, he knocked his bag over and his hat fell to the floor. He picked up his bag but forgot completely about the hat.
"So, should we go to the hospital?" Sharpay asked her brother.
"Yeah we should. But let's find a place to put all our stuff first."
"Where?"
"Come on." Ryan said as he started walking down the street. Sharpay followed, bags in hand, with a very confused look on her face.
They walked a few blocks and finally, Ryan stopped in his tracks. "We're here." He informed his sister. "Oh, my God, I totally forgot we only lived a few blocks from Gabby!" Sharpay squealed as she took Ryan's hand and went up to the front door and started ringing the doorbell. A few seconds later, an elderly man in his fifties opened the door.
"DADDY!" Sharpay squealed as she jumped in her father's arms.
"Hey dad." Ryan said as he joined the hug.
"Kids! What are you two doing here?" Richard asked.
"Long story, we'll explain everything later. Actually, I was wondering if my car was still here. You know, my Chevrolet that Sharpay… crashed." Ryan said as he glared at his sister. He and Sharpay share the same icy glare. Sharpay felt the same way other people would feel when she glared at them. She felt, cold. She just smiled at Ryan innocently.
"Yeah! Of course! I would never get rid of that car! You loved that car!" Richard exclaimed. "But uh… why don't you come and see your mom for a while before you take off?" Richard said as he led his children into the house.
Gabriella, Rachelle, and Roxanne were in the waiting room of the hospital, waiting for Gabriella's mom to come out of the surgery. They have been waiting almost three hours for the surgery and they were about to be done any minute. Gabriella had never stopped pacing since.
"Ms. M, will you calm down?" Roxanne asked.
"What's got you so bugged?" Rachelle asked.
"You don't understand. This is a very dangerous surgery. If the surgeons do anything wrong, or if anything goes wrong… my mom will die." Gabriella explained with tears in her eyes.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Roxanne said.
"Yeah we didn't know." Rachelle explained. Suddenly, Dr. Sparks came out wearing the mask, her gloves and scrubs appearing to be very bloody. Gabriella shielded her eyes. The sight of blood made her gag.
"Ms. Montez. We have some good news and some bad news." Dr. Sparks told them after pulling her mask down. With that, Gabriella's whole body froze and her face lost all signs of color. "Which one would you like to hear first?" Dr. Sparks asked. Gabriella stayed frozen.
"Can you please give her the good news first please?" Rachelle asked. Dr. Sparks looked at the twins quizzically.
"Okay, well, the good news is, that the surgery was successful, nothing went wrong, it was flawless and your mother is now sleeping soundly in one of the recovery rooms." Dr. Sparks said. Suddenly, Gabriella's face received a slight hint of red. "Oh thank God." She sighed.
"But the bad news is," Dr. Sparks continued, "That your mother is too old to get a prosthetic leg. Her body is too brittle and if we go on with putting the leg on, she has a chance of dying. But if we don't put it on, she'll be forever confined to a wheelchair." Dr. Sparks finished.
Gabriella didn't seem to be phased. "So don't give her the leg."
"And leave your mother in a wheelchair?"
"Well, it's better safe than sorry." Gabriella said.
"All right. We won't give her a prosthetic leg." Dr. Sparks said. She put her mask back on and turned around to check on Mrs. Montez in the recovery room. Gabriella, Rachelle, and Roxanne followed her.
Meanwhile, Ryan and Sharpay were halfway to the hospital in Ryan's car with Ryan behind the wheel.
"I can't believe this thing's still alive." Sharpay said in admiration and she stroked the dashboard.
"I know. Considering the amount of beating it took." Ryan said, giving Sharpay another icy glare.
"Hey! It was an accident!" Sharpay said. She raised her hands and defended.
"Yeah, you keep saying that." Ryan said. "I'm glad mom and dad didn't decide to sell it. This thing was like my baby."
"Anyway, so where do you think Gabriella will be?" Sharpay asked.
"Well, her mom is getting surgery so I'm guessing one of the operation rooms." Ryan said.
A few more minutes of driving and they finally arrive at the hospital and found a decent parking space.
"Why'd you have to park so far away?" Sharpay complained as she got out of the car.
"Well, there's no parking spaces left and besides, it's good exercise." Ryan reasoned and they started walking towards the entrance.
"All right mom, you rest up okay?" Gabriella told her mom, although she was still sleeping and non-respondent. Gabriella kissed her mother's forehead and sat back in her chair.
"Ms. M, are you gonna be okay?" Rachelle asked Gabriella sincerely.
"Of course, I'm just sad and tired right now because my mom's so weak. But Dr. Sparks said that she's gonna be okay, so I'm not that worried anymore."
"Oh, okay. Can we go home now? It's like five-thirty and I'm hungry." Roxanne said. Gabriella sighed.
"Yeah, I suppose we can go home now." Gabriella said. "Bye mom. See you soon." Gabriella said. She took Roxanne and Rachelle's hands in hers and they walked out of the room.
Gabriella pushed the down button on the elevator. They waited a few seconds and finally one of the elevators opened and in they went. As the elevator doors were closing, the other elevator opened and out came Ryan and Sharpay.
Sharpay and Ryan walked to the information desk.
"Excuse me, we're looking for a Socorro Montez. May we please know what room she's in?" Ryan asked (A/N: I just used the actress's real name instead of making up one) the attendant politely.
"Sure, she's in RR511." The attendant told them. Sharpay thanked him politely and they found their way to RR511. They knocked on the door before opening and saw Mrs. Montez on the bed wearing oxygen mask and a nurse taking her pulse.
"Hi, how may I help you?" The nurse asked Ryan and Sharpay quietly as they walked in.
"Hi, um… we're friends of Mrs. Montez and we're looking for her daughter, Gabriella Montez. Is she still here?" Sharpay asked.
"Oh, I'm sorry, you just missed her. She went home a few minutes ago." The nurse informed them.
"Oh, okay. Thank you very much." Ryan said as he made his way to Mrs. Montez. "Hi Mrs. Montez. It's Ryan Evans. And um… I hope you feel better soon, I know Gabriella's taking good care of you. I hope to see you awake soon. Bye." Ryan whispered. Sharpay came to his side and took Mrs. Montez's hand and kissed it and rubbed it gently. Soon, they were out of the room and in their car.
"Where do we go now?" Sharpay asked her brother. "To her house again, I guess." Ryan answered and started up the engine.
Meanwhile, Gabriella and the girls got out of the car. Gabriella locked it and she walked to the front steps, and opened the door for them. Roxanne noticed her dad's hat and picked it up and brought it inside.
"Hi Ms. Montez. How is Miss Socorro? Is she all right?" Lucinda asked as Gabriella was taking a sip of water.
"Lucinda, I told you to call me Gabriella, or Gabby. And yes, mom's fine and well. She's just in the recovery room resting now."
"That is very good to know." Lucinda said. Rachelle and Roxanne came into the kitchen to see what they have to eat. Roxanne rested the hat on the kitchen counter. Gabriella immediately took notice of it and recognized it as Ryan's. She stopped drinking water and grabbed it.
"Roxanne, where did you get this?" Gabriella asked.
"Oh, I found it outside on the front step. It's funny because it looks just like daddy's." Roxanne said as she continued eating chips. Gabriella looked over the hat. It really did look just like Ryan's. To make sure, she looked on the inside of the hat, trying to find the sign that Ryan always used to put on his belongings so he would know it's his. He would put, "I 3 Broadway" on every single one of his belongings. And just to Gabriella's dismay, she saw it. She then turned to Lucinda.
"Lucy, did anybody come here when we were gone?"
"Now that you've mentioned it, yeah. It was a man and a woman, both had blonde hair, and they looked alike. The man had blue eyes and the woman had brown. They asked for you, and then they asked if you had two twin girls at the age of seven living with you." Gabriella's face was pure shock.
"What did you tell them?" Gabriella asked nervously.
"Oh, I told them you didn't. You told me to not tell anybody, remember?"
Gabriella sighed in relief. "Good. But we have to get out of here." Gabriella said, she then grabbed her coat, her keys, and her purse and got the girls and opened the front door. As she opened it, she saw a Chevrolet, pulling up at her driveway. She immediately closed the door and dragged the twins up the stairs.
"What are you doing?" Rachelle asked as Gabriella locked her door and opened up the balcony."
"We're escaping. Come and climb down the tree." Gabriella said.
"But why?" Roxanne asked.
"Because I said so! Now go!" Gabriella screamed. The girls immediately obeyed her and went up to the tree. Just as they touched it, someone rang the doorbell. "Hurry!" Gabriella urged the girls.
Lucinda opened the door. "Hi." She greeted.
"Hello, it's us again. We were just wondering if Gabriella's back from the hospital." Sharpay asked.
"Oh yes. Come on in and make yourselves comfortable. I'll go and get her." Lucinda said as Ryan and Sharpay went inside.
"Gabriella? Ms. Montez? Somebody's here looking for you!" Lucinda shouted as she walked up the stairs. She walked to Gabriella's room and found it locked. She started searching for her key.
Ryan and Sharpay were looking all around Gabriella's house.
"It's just the way it used to be." Ryan said. They went into the kitchen and admired it.
"Hey look Ry, Gabby has a hat just like yours!" Sharpay exclaimed, showing the hat to Ryan. Ryan took it from her and looked at the inside. "That's because it is my hat. I wore it this morning." Ryan said as he tried to remember what he did with the hat.
Lucinda finally opened the door but to her dismay, she found it empty. She looked around and found a note on the bed.
Lucy,
I took the girls with me because they're not supposed to be seen by those people. Don't worry. I'll call later. I'll be at the Boltons. Just don't tell those two where we are. Don't give them my number either.
Gabby
Lucinda nodded and folded up the note. She looked at the open balcony doors and shook her head. "Gabriella, what will everybody do without you?"
As Ryan put his hat back on, Lucinda came back downstairs.
"I'm sorry, but Gabriella's not here right now."
"That's ridiculous, her car was just out on the driveway." Ryan said as he walked to the front of the house and looked outside to see the driveway empty except for his Chevrolet.
"Wait… where is it?" Ryan asked. Sharpay shook her head. "Do you know where she might be?" Sharpay asked. Lucinda shook her head. "I'm sorry, she didn't tell me where she was going."
"Oh, okay. Well, thank you anyway, we'll be going now." Sharpay said, as she pulled her brother by the arm, and out the door. "But-" Ryan stuttered. "Come on." Sharpay said. They walked back to their car and sat in it for a while.
"Where could she be now?" Ryan asked.
Meanwhile, Gabriella, Rachelle, and Roxanne got out of the car and stood outside a very familiar house. They walked up to its front door and rang the doorbell. An elderly version of Troy opened the door.
"Can I help you?" He asked.
"Hello Coach Bolton. It's Gabriella. I was wondering if we could just stay here for a few days."
"Gabriella? Gabriella Montez?" Jack Bolton asked. Gabriella nodded. "Come on in."
The next day in New York, Troy woke up and found that Leslie wasn't beside him. He usually wakes up earlier than she does. Wonder where she could be. Troy thought. She looked for her around their apartment but never found her. He then spotted the note that she wrote on the refrigerator door.
Troy,
I'm leaving for Albuquerque for a while. Might pay Miss little perfect Gabriella a visit. Gotta take care of unfinished business. Don't worry I won't take long.
Leslie
Wait a minute, Albuquerque? Troy thought. He thought about what she would do in Albuquerque and then thought about Gabriella. He then put two and two together and found out what Leslie was going to do.
"Oh no, Gabriella."
"Can we get seven tickets to the next flight to Albuquerque, New Mexico, please?" Chad asked the receptionist at the New York International Airport. The receptionist typed something on the computer and faced them again.
"I'm sorry sir, but the next flight to Albuquerque is all booked up. The next open flight isn't until tomorrow at two in the afternoon. Shall I book it for you?"
"Yes please, just any flight to Albuquerque as soon as possible." Chad replied.
"That's seven people?" the receptionist asked. Chad nodded. "One of them is a child." He added. "How old is the child?" The receptionist asked. "Four." Chad replied. The receptionist kept typing on his computer. "All right, I'm going to need your credit card sir." Chad willingly gave him his credit card. The receptionist typed in the number and gave Chad back his card. He kept on typing and finally, he stopped. "All right, sir, you're all booked up. Come and pick up your tickets here before you fly tomorrow. They'll be ready for you."
"Okay, thank you." Chad said politely and turned to the group.
"All right everybody, we'll meet here tomorrow at eleven o'clock sharp okay?" Everybody nodded.
"Troy, why didn't you tell us that you knew what Leslie was planning?" Kelsi asked him.
"I didn't think it was my business. And I'm sure that one of you was bound to tell Ryan sometime. I didn't want to let him know because he'll move for sure, leaving Gabriella here. I don't want to do that to them. I mean, have you seen them? You can see in their faces that they're still crazy for each other."
The gang sighed. Zeke spoke up. "Well, now we can only hope that Leslie won't find Gabriella. And that she doesn't bump into Ryan or Sharpay. If she does, it's going to be a real mess."
Will the drama ever stop? What will Leslie do to Gabriella? Will the gang get there in time? These are the questions that are flowing in your minds right now (hopefully). And all will be answered in the next few chapters... (hopefully). I will update as soon as I can... (hopefully).
word of the day: hopefully. lol
Almost forgot... I'm sure you guys like Ryella stories right? Well, I just read an amazing story by Peppermint Smile called "A New Tune" It is awesome... one of the best stories I have read so far. You guys should go and check it out. It's totally worth it. She's an awesome writer.