Chapter 35: Rising
I'm your biggest fan
I'll follow you, until you love me
Papa-
Paparazzi
Baby, there's no other superstar,
You know that I'll be
Your papa-
Paparazzi
Sharpay and Kelsi strutted across the stage. The composer's soft soprano sang harmony to the drama queen's powerful lead vocals. Kelsi had exchanged her glasses for contacts at Sharpay's insistence, and left her curly brunette hair down. Her outfit matched Sharpay's, but several modifications had to be made, as the petite girl was not as bold as her more voluptuous partner.
Ryan had been called on, once again, as a style consultant. He managed to find Kelsi a blouse and skirt that flattered her figure without making her uncomfortable.
Both girls wore a fair amount of body glitter. Although Kelsi was very much outside of her element onstage, she smiled slightly, her face glowing with a light flush that could only be the result of pure delight.
Troy flashed Ryan an incredulous smile. "Who would have thought that Sharpay would be the one to break Kelsi out of her shell?"
Ryan shook his head, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Sharpay is full of surprises."
Promise I'll be kind
But I won't stop until
That boy is mine
There was a sexy cat claw from Sharpay, and then both girls dropped down low, using their quads to twist back up to their full height. Flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder, the elder Evans twin took center stage, her lips curling into a flirtatious smirk as she gave an attention grabbing shimmy.
Behind her partner, Kelsi visibly blushed, probably embarrassed at Sharpay's choreography. The girls finished in a flourish of lace and pink.
Backstage, Jesse Fitz and Jeremy Chen applauded wildly, Jeremy giving a wolf whistle, for good measure. Sharpay basked in the applause. Kelsi hung back, her expression giving away more embarrassment.
"Brava!" Ms. Darbus exclaimed from the house. "Well done, Ms. Evans and Ms. Nielsen."
"Thank you." Sharpay smiled sweetly.
Ryan broke into a round of applause for the girls, Troy joining him. As Kelsi looked their way, they made sure to flash her a thumbs up. This action caused a tiny smile to form on her face. In the next instant, Sharpay had a grip on the girl's arm, and was tugging her backstage.
"You can't stand here all day, Kelsi. Jeez!" She huffed.
As she was dragged past, Kelsi sent a look the two boys' way that clearly displayed her desire to remove the glitter, and change back into her own clothes.
They returned her look with sympathetic glances. Once the two girls were well on their way down to the dressing rooms, Troy said, "I hope that we can at least do as good as they did." His blue eyes expressed anxiety.
"We've got this," Ryan promised, taking hold of the athlete's hand.
"You sure, Ry? What if I mess up on the moves?" Troy swallowed, taking a step in closer to the blond.
"You won't." Ryan raised his free hand to drag his finger down the taller boy's cheek. "You nailed the choreography during our last rehearsals. You're practically a natural." He smiled softly, the action encouraging the other boy to reciprocate. "I believe in you," he added softly. They leaned into each other, lips parting, when-
"Would you check out the PDA over here!"
The two boys jumped, whirling in the direction of the voice, a female's.
Cassidy Freeman stood there, a smirk on her full pink lips. Her partner, Alan Jacobs, and the other drama club members, Erica Stewart, Joseph Mason, Jeremy Chen, and Jesse Fitz ,were all behind her.
"You know we aren't doing Shakespeare, right?" Erica stepped forward, folding her arms over her chest.
Troy blushed, sheepishly rubbing at the back of his neck as he and Ryan stepped apart. Ryan felt his stomach flip-flop. "Um, we weren't aware that we had an audience," the athlete replied.
"I hardly see the need to suddenly be self-conscious now," Joseph quipped. "You guys are usually all over each other during rehearsals."
Troy and Ryan traded a look, Ryan silently berating himself for not discouraging his boyfriend's affectionate nature while there was a possibility of an audience.
"So," Cassidy moved in, placing her hand on Ryan's arm. "Spill."
"Wh-what?" The blond shifted, his blue eyes widening slightly. She wasn't asking what he thought she was asking, was she?
"Oh, come on!" Erica rolled her hazel eyes. "We know you're doing it, so why play coy about it?"
"You know that everyone wants to know," Alan Jacobs put in, shrugging his shoulders to keep his too-big blazer sitting properly on his gangly body.
""Know", what?" Troy asked, looking toward Ryan for some form of an answer. The theater king had none to offer.
"If Troy Bolton holds up to his reputation," Cassidy finally clarified.
A reddish hue immediately spread across Troy's tanned face. He let out a sound reminiscent of choking.
Sympathy for the golden boy filling him, Ryan came to Troy's aid. "Are you sure you want to know?" He asked, taking the attention off of his boyfriend. "Do you really want me to shatter the illusion?"
Erica, Cassidy, Joseph, and Alan nodded. Jeremy and Jesse shot one another looks of bewilderment.
Ryan leaned in and Cassidy pulled aside strands of her long dark hair so that he could whisper into her ear, "Troy's validity as a sex god, is between him, me, and the creaking of the frame of my king size bed."
Cassidy slowly pulled away, a look of awe creeping over her face.
"Well?" Erica persisted.
Turning away from the blond theater king, Cassidy took hold of a Alan's arm and repeated what Ryan had disclosed to her, into her partner's ear as the gangly boy flushed bright red.
While the group clustered around Cassidy and Alan, eager to hear the information that had been transferred to the dark haired girl, Ryan returned to Troy's side. "Are you alright?" He murmured, lightly squeezing the brunette's bicep. That entire situation must have been extraordinarily mortifying for him.
"I'll be fine." Troy managed a smile, the blush slowly fading from his face. "Just how many times am I going to owe my ass to you?" He teased, gently nudging the blond.
As Ryan smiled back, ducking his head, the sounds of another performance on the stage met their ears.
Keep bleedin'
Keep, keep bleedin'
Love
Gabriella's soprano rose and fell, her notes entwining with the smooth, powerful alto voice that could only belong to her partner, Allison Finch.
"Allison is great!" Troy exclaimed, maintaining dynamic control so that only Ryan could hear him. "I had no idea she had a voice like that!"
"Evidently, neither did she," Ryan mused, his lips tugged up as he observed the smile the younger girl wore on her face. If she had any stage fright before, there were no traces of it now. Apparently, encouragement from Gabriella had been just what Allison needed to receive a confidence boost.
As the pair of girls finished their selection, they made their way backstage, the auburn haired girl assisting her dark-haired partner.
Ryan and Troy nodded at the girls as they strode past. Neither of them was quite ready to forgive Gabriella for making their relationship headline news, and publicly slandering Troy. Ryan still felt a twinge of anger every time he saw her, but, at the very least, civility could be maintained.
The blond male flashed Allison a thumbs-up.
She accepted the praise with a smile, mouthing her gratitude.
Troy gave the younger girl his signature boyish smile.
"Troy Bolton and Ryan Evans," the head stage manager called.
Ryan's hand instinctively sought out Troy's. He took a deep breath.
"You ready, Ry?" Troy asked.
Ryan knew that his boyfriend was not simply imploring whether or not he was prepared to go onstage. He closed his eyes, and inhaled deeply. His grip on Troy's warm hand tightened. Then, he re-opened his eyes, a small smile quirking up the ends of his mouth.
He resurfaced. "Yes, I am."
Troy amply returned the smile, his blue eyes sparkling.
- Don't Let Me Drown-
The curtains opened. An upbeat musical accompaniment poured out of the speakers. Onstage, Troy tapped his foot in time to the beat, gazing upstage. Wearing a smile on his face, he turned downstage to face his audience. Confidence radiated from him, thanks to the little pep talk he had received. I can do this! He told himself.
His voice flowed forth, every note strong, swelling with vigor.
Guess this means you're sorry,
You're standin' at my door
Guess this means you take back
All you said before
A second voice made itself heard; the distinctive light but powerful alto tenor of Ryan Evans. He strutted downstage to join Troy, his steps light as air, displaying all the grace that made him the irreplaceable king of his high school's theater.
Like how much you wanted,
Anyone but me
Said you'd never come back, Troy sang, crossing to his partner.
But here you are, again As they joined their voices in unison, with one fantastic grand jete, Ryan propelled himself into the arms of his boyfriend. Troy held the lightweight blond aloft, the boys smiling into each other's eyes, as he twirled both Ryan, and himself around.
In one beat, Ryan was back on his feet, and the two of them belted out the chorus with impassioned gusto, Ryan taking the melody and Troy the harmony as they executed the moves that they had worked arduously to perfect.
'Cause we belong together
Now, yeah
Forever united here,
Somehow, yeah
You've got a piece of me
And honestly
My life
My life, Troy echoed
Would suck
Would suck
Without you
Moving away from Troy, Ryan hung his head while singing:
Baby, I was stupid
For telling you, "goodbye"
Maybe I was wrong for
Trying to pick a fight, Troy sang, throwing a punch at the air.
Ryan reclaimed the lead. I know that I've got issues, he vocalized. Ha, that's understatement! He mused to himself. With a roll of his hips, he pressed the back of his hand to his forehead in a dramatic gesture and lowered his body, almost to the floor, signifying falling, dying, before springing back up with amazing agility. Troy crossed to him, sweeping Ryan into his arms so that they were so close, the ends of their noses nearly brushed together. He gave a suggestive waggle of his eyebrows, which earned a smile in response from the blond performer.
But you're pretty messed up, too, Ryan finished, scrunching up his nose delightedly as he twirled the index finger of his downstage hand, near his temple, gesticulating the words.
Either way, I've found out,
I'm nothing without you
Their voices rejoined, splitting flawlessly into the harmony once more. As they launched into the choreography, every shimmy, every step, and every ball change was perfect.
The two boys sang through the chorus a second time, coming up to the bridge. Ryan's voice softened, dropping to a light lilt. The raw passion and enthusiasm of his tone did not die out with the decrescendo.
Troy sang sotto voce, as well, as they looked upon one another with adulation glowing in their eyes.
Being with you,
Is so dysfunctional
I really shouldn't miss you, They turned downstage, away from each other, wearing looks of torment.
But, I can't let you go, on "but" they turned back to face each other, the smiles returning to their faces.
Oh yeah
Reaching out, they clasped hands, dancing through the instrumental together, just like they had waltzed around the lake shore that night that seemed as though it was from another life time. The music built to the final reprises of the chorus.
For an instant, Ryan lost himself, and as Troy spun him in, he nuzzled into the boy's chest, obeying his body's command to "never let go". His pulse throbbed in his ears, his heart racing with exhilaration and terror. He was back where he belonged, on stage, doing what he loved. Yet, at the same time, he was being analyzed by his peers. Can they see it? He asked himself. Can they see the scarring? He wanted to hide himself from the world, to never be bothered by interacting with anyone outside of his family and Troy ever again.
But…
He inhaled, steeling himself. He would not crumple. He would not break again.
He spun back out, leaving the safety of Troy's embrace, and kicking out his legs in a spectacular pirouette as they launched back into the lyrics that couldn't possibly communicate the depth of Ryan's feelings for the golden boy. They were a nice start, though.
'Cause we belong together
Now, yeah!
Forever united here,
Somehow, yeah
You've got a piece of me
And honestly,
My life
This time, Ryan took up the echo, his voice nearly cracking as his emotions threatened to break surface. My life!
Would suck
(Would suck)
Without you
'Cause we belong together now
Forever united here
Somehow, yeah
You've got a piece of me
And honestly
My life
(My life)
Would suck
(Would suck)
Without you
Ryan and Troy leaned into each other, the ends of their noses touching. Troy softly butted Ryan's forehead with his own, a loving smile on his lips, that the blond theater king returned.
"I mean it, you know," Troy whispered.
"I know," Ryan replied, a lump constricting his throat as tears pricked at his eyes. He reached down and took Troy's hand into his own and, together, the two of them turned out to face the house and dropped into a bow.
Applause erupted from all around them. Ms. Darbus and Kelsi lead the round, the drama instructor injecting words of praise for her two students who had to overcome so much. Ryan hoped to himself that she would never learn the true extent of the tribulations that he and Troy had been through.
Even Gabriella contributed to the applause, able to cast aside her bitterness toward the pair, if only for a moment. She caught Allison Finch beaming at her, and she realized how glad she was that she had decided to be a "good girl" once more.
A/N: I do not own any of the songs that made an appearance this chapter. The rights to "Paparazzi", "Bleeding Love", and "My Life Would Suck Without You", belong to Lady Gaga, Leona Lewis, and Kelly Clarkson, respectively.
Thank you all so much for your continued support with this story. The kind words that so many of you have left, mean the world to me.
I can only hope that I will continue to have the honor of your support in my quest to see this published.
Next Chapter: Ryan's journey on the road to recovery continues.