Author's Note: Okay. I said one chapter. But it was one LOOOONG chapter! So I've had to split it in two. And now you're rolling your eyes thinking, 'Can't this thing just end already?' And I'm thinking the same! Mad Monday has a life of it's own now. But I promise it's just these two! And then an epilogue. And then we're done.

Disclaimer:…

Chapter 23

Selfless- Part Un

Sharpay

"Mummy, I'm hooooome!"

Sharpay slammed the door behind her and walked through the foyer, dropping her bag by the stairs.

"I am so giving you the silent treatment after dinner for what you did!"

Shar halted in her steps when she walked into the kitchen. It was empty. She had expected to find Mrs. Montez bustling around in preparation for her glorious return. But nothing. She traced back into the living room.

"Mum? Mum?"

She frowned. The car had been in the driveway. So where was she?

"Mrs. Monte-"

The hasty thump of footsteps down the stairs made Sharpay look up. Mrs. Montez was descending, sweeping hair out of her face vaguely. Shar watched her as she began to set her face into a smile. Something was wrong.

"Gabriella! I'm so sorry, sweetie, I didn't hear you call." She pulled her into a hug.

Sharpay disengaged swiftly and began to scrutinize her. The smile was in place, but it stopped before her glistening eyes. Her cheeks were flushed. "Were you…crying?"

For a second, the smile quavered. Mrs. Montez turned and marched towards the kitchen. "I totally forgot to make you something to eat!" Well, that was a first. "Did Ms. Darbus give you good food? I hope it didn't all come in some sort of wrapping."

"Well, actually-"

"What do you want?" she breathed, bringing pots and pans out of the cabinets. "Chicken? Steak?"

Sharpay shook her head slightly, baffled. "Well, I really liked those empanadas. The ones we had at Mr. Almans?"

She had barely finished speaking before her Mrs. Montez froze. She placed her hands on the counter and bowed her head slowly. Sharpay's eyes widened. She had thought that maybe these were menopausal mood swings or something, but now she knew the problem.

"Mum?" she stepped forward. "Did something happen with Mr. Alman?"

Sharpay started when Mrs. Montez burst into tears all of a sudden. She rushed over to the woman, took her by the arm and pulled her over to the kitchen table. They sat, her mother until further notice trying to suppress the sobs and hiccupping awkwardly as a result.

"It was all so stupid," she murmured, staring into her lap. "Why was I getting so caught up in him? You should be my number one priority! I'm sorry, Gabriella."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What are you talking about?"

Mrs. Montez stared around the room desolately. "I called him today. I wanted to ask if he'd like to see another movie because we had such a nice time before. That's why I didn't do dinner today," she said, as if afraid she would be stoned to death for failing to cook consistently. "I thought you could spend the evening with Marie. And that must seem horrible when you only just got back," she groaned.

"It's okay," she said hastily. "Get to the bit that made you cry."

She sniffed a little. "Well, when I called him…Sarah answered."

Sharpay's face clouded over but she pretended not to know. "Who's Sarah?"

"Mrs. Evans. She answered his phone. And I asked her, not very politely, what she was doing at his house. But she said he was at her house. She said they were spending the day together and would I be so polite as to not call him when he was engaged."

Sharpay faltered, trying to conjure a reason for Mr. Alman being at her family's house. He couldn't be a player, could he? He seemed so nice…

"Well she obviously lured him there under false pretences!"

"Oh, and he had no choice but to go?"

Sharpay slapped a hand to her forehead in despair. "He likes you," she said. "Mrs. Evans is married. He doesn't want her crusty, sundried ass!"

"Don't talk about people like that, Gabriella." But a small smile flickered across her face all the same. Resolutely, she wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. "But it doesn't matter. It doesn't."

But it did. It mattered a lot. And what kind of matchmaker would Sharpay be if she didn't try to fix this mess?

As soon as Mrs. Montez got up to go and wash her face, Sharpay pulled out the cellphone.

Gabriella

She waved goodbye to Ms. Darbus as she drove off, turned back to the Evans house and sighed. Gabbie trudged up the driveway, already picturing a sulky Ryan waiting inside.

She hesitated before knocking. Her knuckles were going for the fifth rap when the door swung open. Gabriella blinked in surprise when she saw Mr. Alman towering over her in the doorway. What was he doing at Sharpay's house?

"Sharpay." There was something sheepish and agitated underlying his pleasant, gravelly tone. "I was just leaving."

"Why were you here in the first place?" It probably sounded rude, but she hadn't meant it to.

He tugged at the collar of his blue shirt vaguely. "Uh…your mother had a business proposition. Nothing I'm interested in unfortunately. It was nice seeing you again," he added before she could quiz him further. He slid past her and strode away briskly.

Gabriella watched him drive off before shaking her head, turning and walking inside. Another strange sight greeted her there.

Ryan and Mrs. Evans stood by the stairs, not so much glaring at each other, but staring intently, as if trying to read each other's minds. Mrs. Evans turned and stared at Gabriella as if only just noticing her there. She didn't say anything, opting to turn and run up the stairs instead. Ryan stared after her.

Gabbie hesitated. "What just happened?" He was pretending to ignore her. But he hadn't walked away, which was something. "Ryan. What happened with those two?"

"What does it matter to you?" He set his gaze on her.

She suppressed a quiver. "It matters. Mr. Alman is my mother's…" she waved her hand vaguely.

Ryan tortured her with silent staring for a little longer before he sighed.

"She asked him to come over. She said my dad wanted to get him in on some investments. Pretty twisted, huh? The guy is too gullible," he added wryly.

When he did not continue, she prompted, "And?"

"And she tried to seduce him," he said with a shrug. "Right there in the living room, can you believe. But your mum can rest easy. He's not into mine at all. He ran off to the bathroom when he caught on to what she was doing."

Gabriella was surprised at her own relieved sigh.

Ryan remained oblivious to it. "I try to tell her," he said, staring at the floor. "I really try. But she's like a little kid that doesn't understand 'no' yet. She will, though. My mum's not stupid."

She nodded. "I know."

"And she's not a bad person."

"I know."

"Just a lonely one."

"It's okay."

Ryan looked up at her and then shook his head. He turned and made his way up the stairs.

Gabriella did not waste oxygen calling after him. She made her way to the living room, hoping the chair she sat on was not the one Mrs. Evans tried to get frisky on.

Just as she decided the floor was a safer option, Sharpay's cellphone rang in her pocket.

Shar began to speak as soon as she heard her breathe.

"Something horrible-"

"I know what really happened," she intercepted.

"You do? How?"

"Is my mum okay?"

"She's miserable."

"Wait. I'm coming over…"

Gabriella had barely knocked before Sharpay flung the door open.

"Your mum needs you," she said anxiously. "She's started cooking again."

Gabbie nodded and slid in past her. She walked up the hallway, rubbing her hands on her thighs.

Gabriella felt a rush of empathy as she watched her mother, sniffing over a hissing saucepan. For the first time, she really saw her sadness.

"Um…Mrs. Montez?"

She looked up, startled. "Oh. Hello. Sharpay."

She shifted her wait onto one leg. "I uh…I heard you were a little upset. About my mum and Mr. Alman."

Mrs. Montez blinked uncertainly.

"But you do not have to worry," she continued. "Mr. Alman and my mother weren't up to anything. I know because I was there. And he couldn't have left fast enough when he realized what she was trying to do."

"Really?" But a second later, she tried to banish her smile and replace it with something more appropriate. She couldn't seem to decide between pity, solemnity or mild curiosity.

Gabriella suppressed a giggle at her efforts. "But…the way she made it sound…"

"The way she made it sound. My mother threw herself at him." She cast an apologetic glance back at Sharpay who was standing in the doorway. "He shut her down and escaped to the bathroom. I think that's when you called. Great timing by the way."

"So they weren't…he wasn't…"

"You want to know what I think, Mrs. Montez?"

The look in her eyes clearly said 'Um…I don't think so', but she refrained.

"I think Mr. Alman is a really great guy. I think you should stop being scared and give him a real chance. Because he's your chance to be happy. And if you give up on him now, you won't be able to live with yourself. You'll always smile and you'll never mean it." She paused. "And this is coming from a girl that doesn't even know you that well."

Slowly, Mrs. Montez's face brightened into a smile.

"Well…thank you very much, Sharpay." She turned her attention back to the pan. "Uh…would you like to stay for dinner? I'm making Gabbie's favorite. You seemed to like it, too, that day at the Alman's…"

Sharpay

Sharpay smiled and turned away from the scene. Slowly, quietly, she made her way upstairs. Gabbie had done her part. It was her turn now.

Ryan picked up after two rings.

"Why are you calling me?"

She flopped back on Gabbie's bed. "It's Sharpay, moron!"

"Oh. Right. Why are you calling me?

"I wanna talk about Gabbie."

"I really don't want to hear you bitching about her right now, Sharpay."

"Well, good. Because I wasn't going to." She sighed. "Ryan. Sweetie. Quit being a little bitch!"

"What?"

"You're being totally unfair to Gabbie! How can you be mad for what she did? You are forever going on about how beautiful she is and how much you like her. What was she supposed to do? Block her ears every time you got all sappy? No!" she answered for him. "Because she had to live with you for weeks on end, pretending to be me. How long are you going to hold this against her before you realize the truth?"

"What truth?"

She hesitated for less than a moment. "She loves you, Ryan."

A lengthy pause. "She does?"

Sharpay rolled her eyes. "I know. It's totally gross."

She heard a shuffling and a strange thumping sound. Sharpay could almost see her brother dancing around like a jackass.

"Ryan? Ryan! I'm still on the line."

"I'm coming over there," he breathed.

"What? No! I don't want to see your big mushy reconciliation. She'll come there."

"I'll come where?"

She turned around to see Gabriella standing in the doorway, watching her uncertainly. Sharpay flipped the phone shut.

"Go home." She commanded. "Ryan wants to talk to you."

"He does? About what? What did you say to him now?"

Sharpay grinned. "Go over there and you'll see!"

Gabbie's expression shifted slowly from one of suspicion to one of great relief.

"I have this weird feeling you did something nice for me."

"I did it for my brother. And I little bit for you. But let's not dwell. This is the part where you run to meet the love of your life while uplifting music plays in the background."

And right on cue, Gabriella took off, down the stairs, out of the house, and sped away in Shar's pink convertible.

She sighed as she thumped back down the stairs to tell Mrs. Montez Sharpay would not be staying for dinner. She felt a deep sense of loss all of a sudden.

She had not lost him, per se. She would just have to share him. And Ryan was a good guy. She always knew she couldn't keep him to herself forever. Still. Sharpay already missed her brother.

Gabriella

Gabriella took the stairs two at a time. Just as she reached the top, Ryan came tumbling into sight and the two collided.

"I thought you weren't coming," he exhaled.

"Are you kidding me? The girl always shows up in these movies."

Ryan paused as the metaphor flew over his head. She rolled her eyes and took his hand, dragging him to his room.

She closed the door behind them and turned, sweeping blonde hair out of her face.

Gabbie smiled. "Ryan-"

"I love you, too!" he almost laughed. "I love you and I'm sorry." He took her hands anxiously, rubbing the skin with his thumbs. "I'm so sorry for being such an ass and-"

"Kiss me," she said.

"What?"

"No more apologies! No more talking. Just…" She freed her hands from his grip and clutched at his shirt. She pulled him close, tilting her face up to his like a diver coming up for air.

They were breathing the same breath when Gabbie felt Ryan freeze. She groaned.

"This is weird for you, isn't it?"

"It is painfully weird," he sighed. "I'm sorry."

She smiled and shook her head.

"It's okay. But when I get back in my body, you owe me a very assertive kiss."

Ryan laughed and pulled her into a hug. "That I can promise."

Gabriella wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder.

She loved the whole world just then. Even Sharpay.

A/N: And now I can say with complete confidence that we have one chapter to go! Now imagine how long this would've been without the editing!