Hey! Thanks for the reviews ! ;p They made me smile. I care to share; so here we go: I hurt my foot today during gym class, so my mom has put some ice on it, wanting me to rest, but I insisted on sitting with my laptop to write, so I sit in a very uncomfortable position.
Disclaimer; I do not own High School Musical.
Her Heartbeat
Chapter 2.
--
Laugh when nothing's funny, Dance when there's no music,
Sing like you've never sung before, Love till it hurts,
Cry when you're sad, Smile when you're happy,
And always live each day like its your LAST
--
So the bad news had gotten to her.
She was clutching her pillow with both hands, her knuckles getting white, screaming her anger out. Her head was buried into the mess, making sure no-one could hear her. She didn't want to worry Brooke or Ben, and she didn't want to get Becca on her back, telling her she was interrupting something.
All she really wanted to do was get a big cry.
Too bad that she had no-one to call, or no-one to talk to.
She just really needed a friend sometimes. A friend who wasn't her brother, someone to chat with. And it would be nice if it was a female friend.
"Okay, Sharpay! That's enough!" Ryan yelled, ripping her pillow away from her, "You're gonna smother yourself!"
Sharpay turned around, her hands quickly going for the pillow again, but with no luck, "Give it back, Ryan! You can't tell me what to do!"
"Sharpay, this is not good for you!" Ryan said, throwing the pillow behind his back, "One day you're gonna hurt yourself. What is the matter anyway?"
"Get away from me, Ryan!" Sharpay said, pushing him against the door, "Leave me the hell alone!"
"Fine!" Ryan said, picking up her pillow, "But I'm taking this with me!"
She shot him an evil glance and he hurried out the room.
"How did it go?" Matt asked him.
"Not good!" Ryan said, "I think you should let Becca talk to her. She wont tell me what's wrong, so it must be something involving me."
"I'll talk to her." Matt said. He slowly approached the door, and went in – no knocking.
Sharpay immediately turned around, ready to yell at Ryan for coming back, but paused when she found Matt in the door.
"Listen…" he said, closing the door behind him. He took a step towards Sharpay who was sitting on her bed, tears streaming down her face, "What is wrong, Sharpay? You need to tell me?"
She looked at him as he kneed down in front of her, "Why can't I go, Matt?" she asked, a bunch of new tears spilling out of her eyes, "Why can't I do the audition? Please, I can manage."
Matt sighed and looked at her, "Sharpay… You're doing your best right now, but I can't take that risk with you. If something went wrong, you'd end up in the hospital for God knows how long. We can't let that happen, and you know it."
"But it's just one tiny little dance…" Sharpay said, her eyes begging him.
He tried the best he could not to look into the brown of her eyes. He knew that if he did so, he'd end up giving in to her. She had that power over him, just like Brooke. It was probably a girl thing. Becca had those eyes too, but both Ryan and Ben had blue eyes.
"You know I can't, Sharpay." Matt said, shaking her head, "But if you want to, I can call doc. G and ask him one more time if it could be ok? Do you want me to do that?"
"No!" Sharpay said, "I want you to let me do it."
"But I can't, and you know that." Matt said.
"Why are you acting so much older than me?" Sharpay questioned, "You're only like 20 years older than me."
"And that's enough!" Matt said, tempting to get up, "Come down soon. Dinner is almost ready."
Sharpay sighed and waved him off. She didn't want him to call doc. G. She wanted him to tell her it was ok! To tell her she could do it! She looked around, searching for something to scream her anger into, when her eyes caught her sweatshirt. She grabbed it and threw herself at her bed again.
That was the beginning of another screaming-session.
--
"You're gonna be a good girl today, right?" Sharpay asked, looking expectantly into Ben's eyes. "You're not gonna be trouble, no?"
"No!" Ben smiled, placing his hands on her cheeks, "I'll be a good boy for Paypay, if Paypay is a good girl for me?"
"I'm always a good girl." Sharpay smiled, kissing his hair. "Now, you go have fun, okay?"
"Okay!" the 4 year old ran off in the other direction and Sharpay stood up to put his name into the book for the day. When she was done, she grabbed Brooke's hand and went for the door to leave the preschool.
It was 7:30. She had to drop Brooke of too at her school and then head her own school. It was a good thing that she had a car. Well, she wouldn't be able to walk anyway.
"He is worried about you." Brooke smiled, "We heard you yesterday."
"What yesterday?" Sharpay asked, already knowing what she was talking about.
"When you were screaming and crying." Brooke said, "What was wrong? Mom wouldn't tell me."
Sharpay squeezed her hand and looked in her purse for her car keys with the other, "It was nothing serious, Brookey, I was just a little sad, that's all."
"Oh…" Brooke's face fell.
Sharpay cursed, hating her life. Where did she put those damn keys? She bend down and started pulling all the stuff out of her bag, hoping to find the keys that way.
"Are you looking for these?"
Sharpay looked up to find someone holding her keys. She quickly stood up and grabbed them, "Thank you."
"Sharpay!?"
Suddenly Sharpay realized who it was; "Zeke? Hi. What are you doing here?"
Zeke paused for a second, and scratched his head. Did Sharpay just say hi? "Uhm…" he began, "I was dropping my sister off. What- what are you doing here?"
"Oh!" Sharpay giggled, "I was dropping Ben off. And that's Brooke over there."
Zeke turned his head and found a miniature version of Sharpay smiling at him with big eyes, "Hi!"
"Uhm, hi."
Sharpay bend down again and started stuffing all her stuff into her purse again, thankful that she hadn't thrown her keys away for good.
"So, how do you know Paypay?" Brooke asked.
"Eh…" Zeke didn't know what to say.
"We go to the same school." Sharpay smiled, and stood up. She took Brooke's hand, and awkwardly looked at Zeke. "So?"
"Uhm…" Zeke tried to say something, "I- I don't know what to say. I hadn't expected you here."
Sharpay laughed, "No me neither, it was an emergency; I had to take them." She smiled at him, "But I'll see you later Zeke, I've got to drop Brooke off too soon, or else I'll be late for school."
"Yeah, okay…" Zeke mumbled.
Sharpay awkwardly waved at him and locked open her white car. She went in, and made sure that Brooke was safely tucked in her seatbelt, before gassing up and driving off.
Back was Zeke, looking after the car, stunned.
He didn't even know that Sharpay had younger siblings.
--
"All right, be quiet, everyone!"
The class immediately stopped chatting as Mr. Brown wanted them to. Sharpay bit her lip and rolled her eyes, seeing what he had written on the blackboard.
"Today we'll be talking about all the different kind of jobs you can have." Mr. Brown smiled, "As I already wrote here. There's a lot to talk about, so I figured we'd start by telling each other what our parents do. That could be a good start."
Sharpay sighed, and sunk into her seat, wishing Ryan was in this class too. Then she wouldn't have to tell them herself.
"So, Mr. Bolton, you can begin." Mr. Brown said, "Of course we already know what your father does."
Troy shot him one of his smiles, and nodded, "Yup. My mom has been a housewife for a long time now, but she wants a job at the Albuquerque Hospital again. She used to work there before, but then she took some time off because she had me. But now she wants to come back. She's a nurse."
"Really?" Sharpay exclaimed, before she could even stop herself. She then looked around, "I mean... really?"
"Yeah?" Troy said, "What's with that?"
"It's just…" Sharpay turned around to look at him, "If she hasn't worked as a nurse in what? 15 years…? Then she'll need all sort of courses before she's allowed to work again. A lot change in 15 years, Bolton."
"How can you be so sure about that?" Troy asked, squeezing his eyebrows together.
"Well…" Sharpay began, "It's others peoples health we're talking about, sometimes their lives. Do you have any idea of how much things have changed since 15 years ago? They've gotten like a gazillion new machines and all. Things are up-beat, Bolton."
"How do you know that stuff?" Taylor asked.
"Well, if you must now McKessie," Sharpay said, "Then… I still wont tell you." she turned around again, and looked expectantly at Mr. Brown.
"Well," he said, "Ms. Evans is right, Ms. McKessie. A lot has changed in a job like that during this time. Nurses and doctors have to take courses and such things all the time to keep up. And it's also one of the reasons they get such a high salary."
"Who was your mom gonna work for anyway, Bolton?" Sharpay smirked, wanting to rub it in his face that she was right.
"Doctor Emanuel Geller." Troy replied.
"What!?" Sharpay exclaimed, turning around in her chair to shoot him a death glare, "Doc. G?"
"You know him?"
"Hmm, no…" Sharpay quickly said, turning around in her chair again.
Mr. Brown looked at her, "Well, Ms. Evans, since you're talking so much, for once, why don't you tell us what your parents do for a living?"
Sharpay looked at him, questions in her eyes, "I don't think that will be possible, Mr. Brown."
"And why not?"
"Because my parents are dead."
"They're what?" Mr. Brown said, "They're dead?"
"Yes," Sharpay said, like that was the most ordinary thing in the world, "They died when I was 3 years old."
"I never knew that!" Troy exclaimed from behind, "How come you've never told us?"
"Well, you haven't asked, have you?" Sharpay said, looking at him.
"But you just said you were dropping your sister and brother off today?" Zeke pointed out, "They cant have been born before your parents died."
"I never said they were my siblings." Sharpay smiled at him, "I just told you that they were Brooke and Ben."
"Then who do you live with, ms. Evans?" Mr. Brown asked.
"Ryan and I live with our 17 years older sister. She's married and has two kids. Which by the way are Brooke and Ben."
"Well, then what does she and her husband do for a living?"
"Becca is at home, taking care of important things, and Matt is a lawyer." Sharpay told them.
"How's your economy?" Mr. Brown asked, "With four kids and only one working?"
"Well, it's okay. Mom and dad's life insurance pays for practically everything. The house we live in was in the will for me, the cars and everything for Ryan, and all the stocks were for Becca. We pretty much live off the money from mom and dad, and the stuff Matt's work gets us, is for hospitals and such."
"Okay." Mr. Brown said, "So, now we have three jobs up for discussion. Nurse, Coach and lawyer. Will you tell us about your parents then, Mr. Baylor?"
Zeke nodded and begun telling about his father's job.
Troy kept looking at Sharpay, wondering how it could be possible that he never knew that her parents were dead. It was a pretty huge shock, it seemed like no-one knew. But then again, what did they know about Sharpay and Ryan Evans? They were one big mystery.
She had really not been secrecy about it. She would probably have told him right away if he'd asked, she wasn't trying to hide anything.
Her parents were dead, and there was nothing she could do about it.
Troy liked the way her mind worked.
--
"Pretty please, Ryan!" Sharpay begged, looking at the sign-up list, "Pretty please with sugar on the top!"
"No, Sharpay!" Ryan said, shaking his head, "You're not gonna convince me this time. I don't want you to end up in bed again."
"But I wont end up in bed!" Sharpay said, "I can manage this dance. I'm doing really well right now."
"Yeah, and that's why we don't want to ruin it with a kick-back."
"C'mon, Ry!" Sharpay squealed, "If you don't say yes I'm gonna…"
"You're gonna what, Shar?" Ryan asked, "Tell Matt and Becca that you're forcing me to say yes to you?"
"No!" she said, stamping her foot into the floor, "I'm gonna scream!" she opened her mouth and started to take a deep breath, her eyes telling him that it was his last change.
Ryan quickly reached up and closed her mouth with his hands, "Ok, ok, okay!" he then gave in, "If you promise me not to tell Matt and Becca. You should be able to do this the way things are now.
"Really?" Sharpay's face lit up.
"Yes, really." Ryan said, smirking at her, "But after your visit with doc. G, you have to tell me if things have gotten worse, because then I wont let you do it, okay?"
"Okay."
"You promise?"
"I promise!" Sharpay said, jumping in and hugging him. When she pulled away, she quickly grabbed a pen from her purse and scribbled their names at the sign-up list. "We're auditioning!" she squealed.
"Yeah right, Shar." Ryan smiled.
"I love you, Ryan."
"I love you too."
--
"Can you pass me the milk, Paypay?" Brooke asked, pointing at it.
Sharpay smiled and handed her the milk, "Sure."
"Who was that boy?" Brooke then asked.
Sharpay was confused, "Boy?"
"Yeah, boy?" Becca's face lit up. She was getting interested.
"That boy we met at preschool." Brooke smiled, "He was sweet, he found your keys."
"Oh," Sharpay waved her hand casually in front of her face, "That was Zeke Baylor. I go to school with him."
"Isn't he the baker's son?" Matt asked.
Sharpay nodded, "Yup, that's him. Zeke is a very talented baker too. His cookies are awesome."
"Yeah, Sharpay almost had a thing for him when she tasted them." Ryan said.
"I did not!" Sharpay protested, "I just liked his cookies a lot."
Ryan chuckled, "And his lips."
"We didn't even kiss!" Sharpay said, "We went out once, and then I realized that I just couldn't go out with him. I was just bummed right there because we didn't get the leads and all."
"So you don't like him anymore?" Becca asked.
Sharpay shook her head.
"Damn!" Becca teased, "And I who thought we'd get to have some awkward conversations and act all parent-y soon. Just to practise until Brooke will be a heartbreaker."
"What?" Brooke asked, her tomato soup spilling out of her mouth.
"Well," Matt sarcastically said, "She does seem right on track to become one."
Becca and Ryan laughed, while Sharpay shot Matt a dead glare, and padded Brooke's back. "How did you think you looked when you were young?" she snapped.
Matt got serious, "Okay…" he replied, "So we don't get to meet any boyfriends from either of you?"
"Hey!" Ryan exclaimed, "I'm not gay! I just like to explore my feminine sides."
"Sure." Becca said.
"No, it's true." Sharpay defended Ryan, "I think I'd know if my own twin brother was gay."
"Thank you, Shar." Ryan said, "And besides, there's actually a girl that I like, and she just got available again." He stood up, casually, and placed his plate in the sink, and then he slowly left the room.
"What!?" Becca yelled after him, "Are you just gonna leave us hanging!?"
Sharpay giggled. She loved their evenings. They always had such a great time when they had dinner. And she and Ryan could tell Matt and Becca everything. Things they wouldn't have felt comfortable telling their parents. They all joked around with each other, and teased one another. It was just great.
"Do you know who it is, Shar?" Matt asked, breaking her thoughts.
"Who is what?" Sharpay asked.
"The guy, whoop, sorry; I mean girl, that Ryan likes?"
Sharpay looked thoughtful for awhile, but couldn't come up with someone. Who had just broken up with their boyfriend? Or who had just been dumped… Then it hit her!; "Gabriella Montez."
"Really?" Becca asked, "That girl who stole the leads from you? Along with her boyfriend?"
"Yup," Sharpay said, "That's her, and Troy just dumped her."
"Really…" Becca trailed off.
Sharpay thanked her for dinner and was about to leave the room when Matt stopped her:
"Remember your appointment with doc. G tomorrow, Shar. You want one of us to go with you?"
Sharpay froze, "No." she said, shaking her head, "I'll go by myself. Is it right after school?"
"No, it's during, but I'll write you a note."
Sharpay rolled her eyes, "Sure."
Then she left the kitchen and found her room. She threw herself on the bed and sighed hard. Her chest hurt, but she wasn't about to tell them, they'd just freak out and call doc. G now, and there was no point doing that, when she'd be going there the next day.
Sharpay turned around and looked at the ceiling for awhile.
God!
If Ryan liked Gabriella, then maybe, just maybe… Sharpay could get Troy.
Yeah, I know, not the greatest chapter, but I'll be back with more soon. Not tomorrow though, because I have to work, well, if my foot will let me!? Anyway, this chapter wasn't too exciting, but things will soon start… This story will probably not be as long as "When Will They See?", but it'll still be some chapters. Anyway, I wont promise something I cant keep. Just review me, please? Thanks ;p Tootles, Stessa H.