A/N: Okay, first things first. I am going to change this into a fiveshot. -fixes first chapter- Yes, I know, a little excessive, but I'm paying homage to a slight friendship between Troy and Sharpay in honor of naley4eva93. And secondly, as you can see, this has some Chadpay in it. It's my new obsession. Since this is my first attempt at writing Chadpay, I don't know if it shall ever be seen again with my name on it. So, take a good look, my friends! We'll see how everything pans out. -love- Desireé

naley4eva93- No, I appreciate an honest review much more than an exclamation of 'so good! ud soon' because it doesn't tell me if I need to fix anything. Although those reviews are sincere as well, it's nicer to hear what they also didn't like. And, as it read above, there shall be some connection between Troy and Sharpay in honor of you. Yay! As for the couples I've selected… Well usually I'm used to a very subtle scene of Jelsi, so Ryelsi or Relsi or whatever is new to me, too. I guess I just wanted to try out something different for the time being. As for Troyella… I've fallen victim, and just seem I can't get out of the habit. Not that that's a bad thing for me, but I must stick to my origins. :)

PinkJelly- Ah, I'm so glad you caught this little hint of Harry Potter! My sister was watching the third one when I was writing that portion of the second part, and I was trying to think of a last name for Mademoiselle. Yes, so there's a little hint of Hermione Granger in my little fiveshot. :)

Part Three, The Rebellion

The whole scene was quite intriguing from a distance. In the back of the auditorium, one could stand and examine the actors: Kelsi, weeping quietly in the corner, with Ryan's arm around her. Sharpay sat in the middle of the platform, staring into the eyes of Chad. Gabriella and Troy were huddled over towards stage right, talking intimately while she played with his fingers. And, farther back, Taylor stood, crossly painting a giant Christmas tree with a very tiny paintbrush. They were all separated, defying Ms. Darbus' order (with the exception of Ms. McKessie), enchanted by the person sitting next to them.

"You're on the basketball team," Gabriella said quietly. Troy let his hands fall limp as she picked them up and examined them; he nodded. "I see your picture in the hallway."

When she looked up, his face was slightly red. "Oh, that. It's kind of embarrassing. I don't know why they have a big poster… The drama club probably deserves it more, anyway." She smiled.

"Modesty," the new girl mused, "I like that." He smiled.

"So you're the new girl," he said as she ran a finger along his knuckles. "Where did you live before?"

"San Francisco," Gabriella replied, huffing slightly. "But only for a few months. My mom moves us around a lot. She gets antsy about being in the same place after a while. Usually our stays only last no more than seven months, but I'll have graduated by then, so it looks like Albuquerque is going to have to get used to me for a while."

The way his bangs fell in front of his gorgeous blue oceans of eyes made her stomach twist. "Good," he said happily. "I have the feeling I'd take it pretty bad if you suddenly up and left." This made her stomach twist a little more.

Across the stage, Ryan was trying his best to get Kelsi to look at him. But it seemed she wouldn't, or at least couldn't; her hands were practically glued to her face, trying to soil the tears. "Um, I think your dad can understand," he attempted, hoping this would soothe some of her guilt. But the subtle way her shoulders shook didn't falter and he wondered what his fast-talking, witty sister would do in a situation like this.

Speaking of the devil, she was locked in an intense stare down with Chad. She silently admitted to herself she was actually enjoying herself—his gaze was penetrating, and she hadn't been weak about a guy like this in a long time. The last wild crush of hers had targeted a certain Troy Bolton, but she knew that ship had sailed far away, especially now that the new girl Gabriella was in the picture. Oh well. She didn't mind this Danforth boy.

"I'm hungry," Gabriella announced loudly, pulling herself up with the support of Troy. He played with her hair for a moment before she turned to him and mumbled something. He nodded, and Sharpay smiled. She remembered being that friendly with him. Gabriella asked if anyone wanted something from the vending machines. When no replied, she shrugged and skipped up the aisle, letting light burst through the auditorium for a second before the heavy metal door closed behind her.

There was a small playfulness in Chad's face as he leaned into Sharpay and asked, "Don't you have a dressing room around here somewhere?" She understood he didn't want that—not yet, at least. But, by his tone of voice, she knew he just wanted privacy. Nodding off towards the corner, she smiled.

"Third door. It's pink with my name written on it, so it should be hard to miss." He saluted her and she let herself giggle. Damn it. Sharpay had promised herself giggling deeply affected confidence, and not in a good way. Still, Chad waved and disappeared from sight, knowing she'd follow him eventually. But she had one thing to do before anything else.

The way he stared after her, the small concentration he focused on the door, as if hoping it would open again and let her through, made Sharpay laughed. Troy glanced at her with an irritated air about him, and the drama queen smirked. "You like her," she whispered into his ear, circling him for a moment.

"What?" He looked worried. "No, I don't like—"

"Ah, so you play with everyone's hair?" she inquired, curling a lock of golden sunshine around her pinky. Troy didn't reply. Sharpay felt herself glow with pride. "It's amusing. Only a few months ago, I was daintily promenading after you. And now you're, quite gracelessly, promenading after the new girl." She took a moment to watch what he would do, whether it would be bursting out in a lapse of anger or confessing that he was indeed in love with Gabriella. "You think she's pretty?"

"Sharpay—"

"I would assume the basketball hotshot could answer a simple question," she replied in a huffy tone, "although I was wrong about a lot of things when it came to you." Her mind flashed back to their first and only kiss, under the porch light of the Evans estate. To her surprise, there was no spark when their lips pressed together, barely moving at all before she withdrew. He hadn't seemed hurt. "So do you think she's pretty?"

Realizing she wouldn't give up, Troy stubbornly sighed. "I think she's cute," he answered grimly.

"Yeesh," Sharpay replied, flipping her hair over her shoulder once more. "Could have fooled me."

She knew this would bother him. "What do you mean?" Bingo.

"Well, you don't seem too into her. And every girl knows it's rule numero uno that you can't just waltz off to get food—at an unhealthy vending machine no less—when there's a guy around. Males can't see you eat; it's just a perfectly well known fact. Maybe she picked up a bad vibe from you and looked for a way to duck out of it," she replied.

They both waited, looking at the other with a glowering determination. "Well, you like Chad," he retorted, in a voice that suggested he wanted this to embarrass her.

But alas, a drama queen would never let such a thing happen. "So what if I do?" she asked, stepping closely to him. Their faces were inches apart, and she could smell what he had for breakfast. Toast, with jelly. Hm. "He's cute enough, in a jock kind of way. I am entitled to some fun, too, so why not?" She leaned a little closer, so he could practically taste the strawberry lip-gloss she had laid on her mouth only an hour before. Just as their lips were about to touch, she pulled away, smiling and giving a little wave before she flounced backstage. Gabriella trudged up the stage steps, carrying a pack of animal crackers. She furrowed an eyebrow.

"What was that all about?" she asked, looking at the doorway through which Sharpay had sauntered. In her head, Gabriella was thinking, Another bitch.

"Um, nothing," Troy said. He took a breath and pulled Gabriella toward him, watching her eyes until their lips met. His entire body set off like a firework, and she eased into his arms, her hands running along his jaw line, sliding around his neck as her tongue explored his mouth. She couldn't help but feel somewhat gleeful. Wasn't this a bad girl type of thing? Make out with a guy in detention? Being bad felt good, she decided. When they finally pulled away, he smiled. "I'm glad I got detention today."

"You're telling me," she replied, kissing him again. Being bad was totally good.

…

The room hadn't been used for a week. Ms. Darbus had cancelled all rehearsals for the last five days due to some 'scheduling conflict.' Whatever that meant. Sharpay hadn't been listening. Instead, she had snuck her iPod Nano into her pocket and listened to the Peter Bjorn and John oldie 'Young Folks.' She liked the whistling.

"You've had a lot of admirers," Chad observed, picking up one of the many dead bouquets of flowers that sat beside the sofa. She nodded in the mirror, not bothering with a vocal response. "Any of them interesting enough?"

"Are the flowers all dead?"

"Yes."

"Well, there you go."

He smiled. "Would it be too soon to say I love you?"

She turned, standing up from her vanity stool and taking the dried roses from his hands carefully, avoiding any run-ins with thorns. "Yes," she told him with a smile, "much too soon."

…

Oh, she had been stupid. Very, very stupid. Taylor liked Chad well enough—he was cute and sometimes he could make her laugh in class. But her self-pride had overcome the common sense to accept his proposal, so now she was stuck, painting a wooden stand that was supposed to be a wrapped Christmas present from Santa Claus. Old Saint Nick had been marked off her list of important people a while back; it hadn't occurred to her that she was now the remaining person on that list.

Glancing over, she saw Kelsi and Ryan playing cards, specifically War. Ryan was winning by a landslide, but Kelsi seemed to be enjoying herself. Taylor envied her at that moment. She had to win all the time—how could Kelsi be such a gracious loser and simultaneously get a guy? "Some people have all the luck," she sighed to herself, dipping her brush in green paint. She wasn't aware she was on that list, too.

…

They made their way backstage as well, precariously avoiding Sharpay's room all while eyeing the closed door. Troy couldn't help but wonder as his tongue found Gabriella's mouth what exactly his best friend was doing with the drama queen at that moment. "God, this kissing this is incredible," the dark-haired girl gasped as he gently pushed her against the wall and let his lips fall against hers again. She let a soft moan escape her throat before her nails dug into the skin of his neck again. "I can't believe I totally skipped out on it the last few years."

He looked at her with some curiosity. "You mean you've never kissed a guy before?"

She laughed and smacked his shoulder. "No, stupid. I'm not that naïve; I've had a few kisses in my day before. Just none too memorable. Not… Not intense like this one." They allowed the space between their mouths to evaporate as he smiled into the lip lock. She could sense his happiness and just let his hands work their way through her hair.

Down the hall, Sharpay sat on the sofa in her dressing room, watching Chad demonstrate some sequence in basketball that she would never remember. "This is useless," she complained. He frowned slightly. "Oh, honestly, Chad, I'm an actress. And we actresses don't need to know hot to execute a proper three-point throw or whatever it is you called it." Before he could correct her, she stood up and put a finger to his lips. She was surprised how soft they were. "Let's just sit for a little while, okay?"

He nodded, agreeing as she crawled onto his lap, her hair spilling a brilliant sunrise over his chest. "Still too soon?" he whispered quietly.

She wanted to say no, and that he could tell her he loved her all he wanted, but she nodded again. "Yes, still too soon."