A/N: You guys aren't mad are you? Sorry I took more than a week to update! I had standardized testing this week, and I'm glad it's finally over. They give the tests really early here in NJ. Usually, they give it in May. But oh well. Thanks for the awesome reviews! I received ten reviews! That's the most I've gotten so far with this story! WHOO!
Tigerlily Brown: Of course, nobody can hate Ryan!
megan: I guess I just have the ability to make evil characters! And I'm glad that I got you something for your birthday! Happy belated birthday!
lol925: I know I have so many questions. Hey, questions make you smarter!
xXxHSMLUVRxXx: Thanks for the review! Here's an update!
Vanessa Turner: Haha, believe me, I had no intentions of dissing your exbestfriend. I just made Leslie up!
highsmusicalrox: Thanks! I might take your idea into consideration! lol
TheFabMax: I leave it with cliffhangers because I enjoy reading your reactions! lol I'm so mean! Anyway, I can't guarantee any answers but there will be answers! Later! Much... later...
Queen Desvel: Are you okay? lol.
ILuvLucasGrabeel: That was my intention! Glad I made it happen!
Zac's my boyfriend: Here's an update for ya!
Again, thanks guys. I love you all so much! I hope this chapter was worth the long wait!
This Is War
Chapter 25: Late-Night Chase
"What did you do to Ryan?" Gabriella asked again, just as sternly as the first time she asked.
"If I were you, I'd worry about myself first before some worthless piece of crap." Leslie answered.
"Do not call him that! He is not worthless! He is not a piece of crap either! Maybe you are, but he's not!" Gabriella shouted. Leslie's eyes showed anger as she slapped Gabriella across the face harder than ever before. Gabriella's head turned sideways, her face brimming with tears from both the pain, and the fright.
"You say that one more time and you might not make it alive when we get to where we're going." Leslie threatened. "Just try me. Go ahead say something. I'm capable of doing more than you know." Gabriella didn't say anything. She kept her mouth shut.
"I thought so. You're just another piece of crap like the rest of them. I'm starting to think if it's even worth going through all this trouble to torture you."
"First of all, how many times are you going to say 'crap'? Second of all, where are you taking me?"
"Okay, you don't like the word 'crap'? Fine, I'll use 'shit', how's that for you? You're all pieces of shit. And don't worry about where we're taking you. Worry about what we're going to do to you." Leslie said. She took her mp3 player from her pocket, put the earphones in her ears and clicked on play. Gabriella knew it was no use talking to her. And judging by the looks of the driver, she knew he wasn't worth talking to.
Gabriella laid her head on the heavily tinted window, her arms and legs still tied and duct-taped. She looked up at the black night sky with hope flashing in her eyes.
"Ryan… I hope you still have my back."
Meanwhile, at the Evans' residence, Ryan woke with a start. "Gabriella!" He shouted. He soon realized that Gabriella was in fact not beside him. He wasn't on his bed either. Neither was he in his room. What happened? He thought. He sat up and saw that he was in the backyard, in the middle of the swimming pool, lying on top of an inner tube. In. The. Nude.
He struggled to get out of the inner tube, his bottom was stuck and he couldn't break free. Ryan swore under his breath while trying to get unstuck. Finally, all his struggling made the tube turn upside-down and Ryan came splashing in the cold water.
As he got out of the pool, he started cursing like there was no tomorrow. He also started shivering in the cold night breeze. He came to the pool cabinet where they keep all the towels. He opened the door and found that no towels were available except for Rachelle's pink towel that says Princess on it.
Great, just… great. Ryan thought. He took the rather small towel, and tied it around his waist, praying to the heavens that none of his neighbors had seen him naked while he was sleeping.
He came up to the backdoor and started knocking mercilessly on it. "Mom! Dad! Sharpay! Gabriella! Girls! Open up! It's Ryan! I'm locked out! If you can hear me please open up!"
Meanwhile, in Ryan and Sharpay's parents' room, Mr. and Mrs. Evans' bed was empty, the covers were a mess and there was no sign of Mr. and Mrs. Evans. Faint knocks and mumbles can be heard from the closet and from the bathroom.
Inside the bathroom, Mrs. Evans was tied up and duct-taped too. Her mouth, including her eyes, were also duct taped so she wouldn't be able to see or say anything. She was lying on the bathroom floor, trying to get out of the strong binding. She was kicking the door, hoping to get someone's attention.
In the closet, Mr. Evans is also tied up and duct-taped. His eyes and mouth were also duct-taped. He was leaning on the closet door, trying to shout for help.
Ryan waited for a few minutes and when nobody opened the backdoor, he decided to try the front door. He walked around their huge house and walked the front path and arrived at the door. He looked under the welcome mat, trying to find the spare key, but instead found a note saying:
Do you think I'm stupid? Do you actually think I'd forget about the spare key? Puh-leaze.
Ryan groaned and decided to knock senselessly on the door more. "MOM, DAD! THIS ISN'T FUNNY ANYMORE! SHARPAY! OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!" After knocking, he started ringing the doorbell over and over again.
Meanwhile, Sharpay's eyes shot open after hearing numerous bangs, angry shouts, and ringing. She found herself bound and duct-taped on her bed. Her mouth was also duct-taped. She started to panic; sweat was running down the side of her face, tears coming to her eyes. She did the only thing she could do. She screamed.
After having rung the doorbell multiple times, Ryan stopped and listened for a moment. He heard a soft high-pitched scream coming from the inside.
"Sharpay?" He asked himself. He listened again. "Sharpay! I'm coming!" Ryan shouted through the door. He ran to the backyard and tried to figure out how to get to the second floor.
He decided to climb the nearest tree to Sharpay's room. Fortunately, Sharpay has a balcony.
As he was climbing the tree, the towel around his waist was slipping, but he dared not take his hands off of the tree because he might fall.
He was almost there, only a few more feet to go. He had to crawl on the branch to get to Sharpay's balcony. To his disadvantage, the branch was thin and weak, and he was a grown, heavy man. He had no choice but to make a jump for it.
He stood on the tree carefully, holding the branches for support. Nothing big, right? Only a few feet to jump. He thought positively. If only actions were as simple as words.
He was ready to jump. He was determined. He said a little prayer first, just in case. Then, he did it. He jumped.
He grabbed hold of the railing, his feet dangling in the air. He used his arm muscles to bring himself up. His feet found the balcony floor and soon, he was over the railing and was looking through Sharpay's window. He felt an uncomfortable draft and realized that his towel was gone. He saw his towel stuck to one of the branches of the tree.
He swore.
"Sharpay? Open up!" Ryan shouted, he was shivering like crazy. Sharpay heard him and she managed to get off of her huge bed. She hopped to her balcony and saw Ryan outside without any clothes on. She turned away at the sight of him.
"Sharpay what happened?" He asked through the glass. Sharpay mumbled something back. It was inaudible but Ryan understood that she was saying, "I could ask the same to you".
"Never mind me. Move away from the door." Ryan commanded. Sharpay sat on her bed. Sorry for this Sharpay. Ryan thought as Ryan kicked the doors open and rushed inside. He took all the duct tape and rope off of Sharpay.
"What were you doing outside in the nude?" Sharpay asked, keeping her eyes closed.
"Truthfully, I don't know. But I have a feeling whoever did this to you, was the one who put me outside." He said as he took the last piece of duct-tape off of Sharpay.
"Do you mind putting on clothes first?" Sharpay recommended. Ryan nodded and ran to his room. He expected to see Gabriella lying on his bed, but no such luck came.
A few minutes later, Ryan had finished dressing and he ran back to Sharpay's room, finding her in a casual outfit instead of her nightgown.
"Gabriella's missing." He alerted her. They started searching the house to see if everybody else was all right. They found their parents in their closet and their bathroom.
"Ryan! Sharpay! Thank goodness you found us!" Mr. Evans said as he hugged his children.
"Do you know who did this to you?" Sharpay asked while still taking off the rope that was binding her father.
"Yes, it was a woman. With blonde hair, and greenish-blue eyes. She looked about your age." Mr. Evans said. Ryan's eyes filled with anger and fright.
"Do you know where she went?"
"No, but I heard her say that she was going to the girls' room next." Mr. Evans said. Ryan bolted from his spot, ran through the hallway, checked in Rachelle and Roxanne's room and found it empty. Not again! He thought. Sharpay soon arrived and so did their parents.
"She kidnapped them again?!" Sharpay shouted.
"Where could she have taken them?" Mrs. Evans said. Ryan thought about this for a while. Mrs. Evans ran to her phone and called the police.
Ryan had an idea. He grabbed his sister's wrist, ran down the stairs, grabbed the car keys and shot out the front door.
"Where are we going?" Sharpay questioned her brother, confusion spelled across her face.
"To the one person who knows her the most." That was all Ryan said. Sharpay got in the passenger seat of his car as Ryan climbed in the driver's seat. He started up the car, backed away from the driveway and headed in the direction of the Bolton residence.
Ryan got out of the car and left Sharpay sitting in the passenger's seat.
"What are we doing here?" She asked. "To straighten out some things." Ryan answered. He rang the doorbell once, as to not disturb the residents. A few minutes later, a sleepy Mr. Bolton opened the door.
"Oh, hey Ryan. What are you doing here at three o'clock in the morning?" Jack asked as he rubbed his eyes to get rid of the sleep.
"I'm sorry for disturbing you Mr. Bolton, but I really need to speak to Troy, if it's okay with you."
"Sure, go right ahead up in his room." Jack said, covering his mouth while yawning.
Ryan smiled and said thanks before going inside. He ran up the stairs quietly to not disturb Mrs. Bolton, and got into Troy's room.
He tapped Troy on the shoulder, in an attempt to wake him up. All he got from him was a few mumbles and groans. Getting aggravated, Ryan pushed Troy out of his bed.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Troy said in a quiet whisper, but still loud enough for Ryan to hear. He stood up and started rubbing his temple.
"Get dressed and come with me." Ryan said as he stepped out of Troy's room, closing the door behind him, and waited outside of Troy's room.
"What's up?" Troy said sleepily as he climbed into the backseat of Ryan's car, while Ryan was getting in the driver's seat.
"You woke him up?" Sharpay asked Ryan, slapping him on the shoulder.
"Hey, we needed answers and he has them." Ryan replied.
"What do you mean by answers?" Troy asked while yawning and rubbing his eyes.
"Your girlfriend kidnapped the girls and Gabriella again." Ryan said.
"What girlfriend?"
"Leslie, you idiot!" Sharpay shouted.
"Oh, I dumped her." Troy said plainly.
"Well, your ex-girlfriend just kidnapped the girls and Gabriella again. We were hoping you knew where she was taking them."
"Oh, no. She kidnapped them again?" Troy sighed. "I don't know where they're headed. She could've taken them anywhere by now. Have you called the police?"
"My mom did." Ryan answered. They all sighed.
"Knowing her, she probably took them to some secluded area where she knows nobody would suspect her to be in." Sharpay said. Troy's eyes widened.
"Um…" He started.
"'Um…'? What 'Um…'?" Ryan asked frantically.
"I think I may know where they could be."
"Why did you take me to East High?" Gabriella asked as she and Leslie stepped out of the car.
"Not just you." Leslie said. Gabriella saw Rachelle and Roxanne step out of another car that has been following them.
"What is it with you and having Rachelle and Roxanne? Why can't you just leave them alone?"
"I have my reasons." Leslie said, and before Gabriella or the twins could scream, Leslie gagged them with socks and tied kerchiefs around their mouths.
She led the trio inside, with the aid of her henchmen. Memories immediately coming back to Gabriella as she saw the red and white colors of the hallways.
As they passed some East High memorabilia, Gabriella's eyes filled with tears. She saw old pictures of herself and Taylor hugging after winning the Scholastic Decathlon, pictures of Troy on top of his teammates' shoulders with a trophy in his hands after having won the championship game, and of course, pictures of the dynamic duo that is the Evans twins, auditioning for their callback roles.
There were other pictures of other East High students among them, but the one that caught Gabriella's eye the most is a picture of herself and Ryan in a musical production. They weren't doing anything special in the picture; they were just… standing there, looking into each other's eyes, enjoying the moment. To any ordinary person, it maybe just a meaningless picture showcasing two people in a musical, but to Gabriella, it meant everything.
"Will you stop with the waterworks? I wanna get done with this before dawn." Leslie complained and pulled Gabriella away from the pictures.
"Okay, so we're at East High, what exactly are you gonna do to us in this school?" Gabriella asked as Leslie took off her kerchief.
"You'll see."
Before Gabriella could figure out what was happening, she saw herself on the edge of the school's rooftop, in the gang's old secret spot. It used to be just Troy's secret spot, but since everybody became friends, he shared it with the gang.
Everything was still in place, the flowers, the plants, and the benches, with some few additions like the telescopes, a new chair here and there and personal items. Like it's somebody else's secret spot.
"Wait, what are you going to do to me?" Gabriella asked.
"What do you think, dumbo? Why do you think you're standing so close to the edge of a rooftop? I thought you were supposed to be a genius."
"What are you going to do with the twins?"
"That's none of your business, but since you won't be here anyway, I'll tell you. Soon, they'll be under my custody, and I'll have them do whatever the hell I want them to do. Earn a little money for their mommy."
"What kind of things are you going to make them do?"
"I don't know… stuff I guess. Now stop yakking and get on with this." Leslie said as she stepped closer to Gabriella, ready to push her off the edge.
"I just have a few questions before I go." Gabriella said. "Why did you have to do it here in East High?"
"So that it'll hurt you more. I knew it would bring back valuable memories and make it even harder for you to say goodbye."
"Okay, but what if I don't die from this fall?"
"It doesn't matter. You'll probably end up being in a coma or something. You won't remember a thing. If you don't, I'll make sure you won't remember a thing." Leslie said. "Now can we please get on with this, I have things to do."
"Where?" Ryan asked Troy frantically.
"Go to East High." Troy instructed. Ryan followed his instructions without any complaints or questions.
On the way there, Sharpay asked, "How do you know they're at East High?"
"Long story short, I told Leslie about our secret spot on top of the roof. And that nobody knew about it except for us and the science club." Troy answered.
"You knew she was planning something evil and you still told her about that? You are a complete imbecile." Sharpay insulted.
"Hey, do you want to save them or not? So, shut it!" Troy said. "You're lucky I'm even helping you." That was the last thing that was said and the rest of the car ride was silent.
"There they are!" Ryan shouted as they parked in a space in front of the school. He pointed to the roof making Troy and Sharpay look.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Sharpay said as she opened her door and started sprinting for the school.
"What are they gonna do to her?" Troy asked.
"Looks like they're gonna push her off the roof. Come on!" Ryan said as he barged through the doors followed shortly by Troy.
"Guys wait!" Sharpay screamed. She's still on the street, not even reaching the front door yet. "You know, it's really hard running in heels!" She said particularly to no one since the boys are already halfway there.
"So, any last words?" Leslie asked, approaching Gabriella, ready to push her off.
"You know, I can't believe you! You are a psycho!" Gabriella shouted. Leslie just rolled her eyes. "As if I didn't know already." She said.
Gabriella then sighed. She knew there was no point in shouting at her. "Can you at least please tell Ryan that I love him? And that I never stopped loving him. Please, that's all I'm asking you to do. Just in case I don't come back or I can't remember." Gabriella said.
"Aww… Ms. Montez is in love." Leslie teased.
"Please Leslie! He needs to know! I'm begging you!"
"Yeah whatever." Leslie said, no emotion in her voice whatsoever.
"Can we please get on with this? I have better things to do." One of Leslie's henchmen complained.
"Shut up. I'll do it whenever I want to do it." Leslie said. "That time would be now." Leslie said. Ryan burst through the door.
"NO!" Ryan shouted and tried to run to Gabriella. But in one swift move, Leslie pushed Gabriella off of the roof.
(gasps) OMG! What will happen? Gabriella! AHH! Suspense! Drama! AHH! What more could a person ask for? lol, I'm so hyper right now. Anyway, tell me what you guys think!