AN: I forgot to say last chapter, but congrats to everyone who figured out Gabby was the werewolf. Also, I promise actual PR characters will show up soon. (And by "soon" I mean "chapter after next.")

Men and Monsters

Chapter 3

The front lawn was full of activity. Friday meant the weekend and everyone was trying to finalize their plans before school started.

"So," Kelsi said, sitting beside Martha and Taylor on the main steps, "date with Chad?"

"Maybe," Taylor said, twisting and untwisting a lock of hair around her finger. She was staring at the buses and worrying her lip.

"What's up with her?" Kelsi stage-whispered to Martha.

"It seems there's some social drama this morning," Martha said primly and nodded to the basketball team, all of whom were on the sidewalk, staying as far away from the main building as possible until the bell rang. "Troy found Gabriella's necklace in the locker room after practice yesterday and when word got around to Taylor, she called Gabby's house."

"And?" Kelsi pressed, seeing Troy's worried expression.

"Her mother said she was staying over at …," Martha paused for dramatic effect, "Sharpay's."

"What?" Kelsi cried.

"My words exactly," Taylor said before giving a great huff and standing. "She didn't get off the bus. This is bad. When does Sharpay usually get here?" she asked Kelsi.

"Um." Kelsi scrambled for her bag and pulled out her cell phone. "Right now."

All three girls looked at the main entrance and saw Sharpay's pink convertible rolling in. Sure enough, Gabriella was sitting in the passenger seat.

"Where's Ryan?" Martha asked.

"Right here."

The girls cried out in surprise and turned to see Ryan standing behind them.

"Don't you dare do that again, Evans," Taylor said, slapping his shoulder lightly and putting a hand to her chest. "But since you're here, why don't you tell us what my best friend is doing with your sister?"

Ryan shrugged. "Shar needed some help with the math homework and let Gabriella use our pool in exchange. No big deal."

"Strike that. Huge deal! Since when does Sharpay Evans ask for help? Especially from Gabriella!"

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Come on, Shar's not that bad."

Martha guffawed and quickly covered her mouth. "Sorry, it's just … Sharpay's a first class demon wrapped in sparkles and taffeta."

"Exactly," Taylor agreed, ignoring Ryan's shocked expression. Before she could say anything else Gabriella and Sharpay arrived.

"Hey, guys," Gabriella said, smiling. She was slightly pale but the others attributed it to spending the night at Sharpay's.

"Speak of the devil," Martha whispered to Kelsi, who bit back a smile.

"Kelsi," Sharpay said, snapping her fingers, "the new musical. We're doing Faust." With that she sauntered into the school.

As Taylor dragged Gabriella aside for some quality best friend time Kelsi and Ryan slowly followed after Sharpay.

"You could have told me, you know," she sighed.

Ryan started. "Told you what?"

"That Gabby was the reason you flaked yesterday. You didn't have to lie. You shouldn't have lied."

Ryan grabbed Kelsi's elbow, stopping her and forcing her to face him. "I didn't lie. There really was an emergency."

"Sharpay actually being civil to Gabriella isn't an emergency. A miracle, sure, but not an emergency. And anyway," she added, pulling away and heading to her locker, "I understand."

Ryan frowned at her tone. "Understand what?"

"You like Gabby."

It took a moment for his brain to wrap around that idea. "No, I don't," he said.

She smiled indulgingly at him. "Everyone knows, Ryan."

"No, they don't!"

"I saw you at Lava Springs. You were giving her puppy dog eyes."

"No, I wasn't!"

"You were always with her."

"We were rehearsing. She was my partner. You know how this works, Kels."

She shook her head as she spun her lock. With a glance at Sharpay she said, "Whatever you say, Ryan."

"Ryan!" Gabriella and Sharpay called at the same time. Their eyes met for a moment before Sharpay shrugged one shoulder and walked away.

"Wow," Ryan said. "That's the first time I've ever seen Sharpay let someone else go first."

Gabriella grabbed his arm. "I need to borrow him," she said to Kelsi and dragged him away.

"Hey!" Ryan said. "We were having a conversation."

"I know," she said, pulling him into the doorway of a janitor's closet. Since there were no lockers for several feet on either side it was a mostly empty area of the hall. "That's what I need to talk to you about," she hissed.

"What? Why?" Ryan asked warily.

"I don't think you should hang out with Kelsi any more than is strictly necessary."

"Why?"

"I saw you yesterday, Ryan. The things you and Sharpay can do … Kelsi's a nice girl. I don't want you hurting her."

"I would never hurt Kelsi, Gabriella. I'm in full control, so's Sharpay."

"It's not your control I'm worried about. You said yourself that you're evil."

"When was the last time you saw me do something evil?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"Aside from last night," he amended. "And why aren't you telling me to stay away from any of the other members of drama club? Or Martha or Taylor or Chad or Troy or --"

"You know exactly why."

"Obviously I don't or I wouldn't be asking."

Gabriella sighed. "Last night Sharpay asked if I'd seen any horror movies. And I know that in the old monster movies there is one prevailing rule."

"And that is?"

"The bad guy always ends up hurting the girl he loves."

Ryan blinked once. Twice. And marched away. When he collapsed into his seat in homeroom Sharpay tapped his shoulder.

"What?" he asked, leaning back his head to look at her.

"What was all that about?" she asked.

He looked up, making sure no one was close enough to hear and that Kelsi was thoroughly engrossed in talking to Ms. Darbus about the upcoming play. "In the past fifteen minutes Kelsi has tried to convince me I'm in love with Gabriella and Gabriella has tried to convince me I'm in love with Kelsi."

Sharpay bit her lip but couldn't hide her laughing smile.

"What?" Ryan demanded.

"No, nothing."

"Come on, you can't hide it forever. I know you, you don't do secrets well." When she only shook her head and began examining her notebook Ryan's eyes went wide. "You think one of them is right, don't you?"

"Well obviously," Sharpay hissed.

"Who?"

"Gabriella."

Ryan processed this for a moment before asking, "Do you think I'm in love with her or that she's right?"

"Hmm, yes."

"Shar."

"You'll just have to figure it out for yourself, loverboy," she said, and pinched his cheek.

Before he could argue the bell rang and Ms. Darbus called the class to order with the announcement of Faust as the Autumn Musicale.

#

"Hey," Gabriella said as she emerged onto the school's roof during free period.

Troy smiled thinly. "Hey. How's it going?"

She sighed. "Okay."

"Just okay?" He took the small set of stairs two at a time and pushed a lock of hair from her eyes. "You're not looking too good."

"It was a long night."

He laughed, "Yeah, I can't imagine spending that much time around Sharpay."

She decided not to remind him about all the time he'd spent with her last summer and let him believe that Sharpay really was the cause of her tired demeanor. She hadn't had that many questions about being a werewolf. Pop culture had done a fairly good job of educating her on lycanthropy and she'd only needed Sharpay to clarify a few of the particulars. The thing that kept her up though, had been coming to terms with the fact that she was now Gabriella Montez, werewolf. She would never be able to give blood, try going vegan, sit in the moonlight with Troy. That last one had prompted quite a few tears and she'd been thankful that she'd been offered a guest room instead of a sleeping bag on Sharpay's floor.

"I found your necklace," he said suddenly, digging the chain out of his pocket. "It's broken though. I'll need to get a new chain."

"I have one," she said quickly, fingering the chain around her throat. Sharpay had given it to her, with an assurance that it wasn't real silver, but she wasn't about to tell Troy that. He gently strung the pendant on the new chain and spun her around.

"Perfect," he said and she blushed. "So, what's up with you and Sharpay?"

Gabriella sighed. "I don't know. I mean, we were almost friends at the end of summer and then --"

"Summer ended?"

"Yeah. It was nice when all of us were together. And this is our last year. I don't want to waste it feuding with her."

"I understand. But I still want some alone time with you too. So how about Saturday? Seven o'clock?"

Gabriella winced. Saturday was the full moon. "No, I already promised Sharpay I'd come over again."

"Again?" Troy echoed. "Wow, you're really dedicated to this whole friendship thing. Are you sure you're feeling all right?" He reached up to feel her forehead and she dodged away, laughing. "No, seriously," he said, chasing after her, "you could be sick. We may have to quarantine you."

A quiet clearing throat made them both stop.

"Taylor," Gabriella said, seeing the girl on the stairway leading down into the school.

"I just came up here to tell you they're working on the bells. If you don't hurry you'll be late for next period."

"Oh no!" Gabriella said, rushing down the stairs after her friend. Troy followed more slowly, content now that he knew the cause for all the drama. He actually felt a bit silly for overreacting when he'd found the broken chain and pendant in the locker room. It all made perfect sense and he should have had more faith in Gabriella. Though, he couldn't quite silence that nagging voice in the back of his mind, telling him that something still wasn't right.

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