Why
It must've been a place so dark, you couldn't feel the light reaching for you through that stormy cloud.
A freshman named Troy Bolton walked the halls of East High slowly, imagining all that had happened that day; everything. His girlfriend, Gabriella, dumped him in front of everyone at lunch. Her harsh words still circled his mind. She said she never loved him, but used him as a "stepping stool to get to the top of the school." Laughs filled his head as he walked a little faster to get to the exit doors until he heard a voice coming from the auditorium. The voice he heard was nothing like he had ever heard before; it was angelic, amazing, and most of all, it was heartfelt. Troy slowly opened the doors revealing a near empty auditorium. All but one other student had fled the stage. She sat at the edge grasping a guitar as she strummed the strings. Her face revealed pain, for she had mascara stained tears falling down her face as she played.
"Sharpay…" Troy whispered, immediately recognizing the distressed singer; Sharpay Evans, also known as the ice queen. She was the one that never broke no matter what was said. The only person she ever spoke to was her twin brother, Ryan, who was also a fan of the drama department. What Troy didn't understand was how the ice queen could be seen like this. No one had ever seen her shatter to pieces except for now. And by the painful stare Troy got, he knew he was sworn to secrecy.
That was the moment Troy never thought he'd see.
Now here we are gathered in our little home town, this can't be the way you meant to draw a crowd.
A happier, senior Troy Bolton busted through the doors of his family's home, along with his best friend, Chad.
"Hey Momma!" Troy shouted as he kissed his mom on the cheek. That's when he noticed that she had been upset, for her eyes were bloodshot and her mouth was drawn up in a sour position. "What's wrong?"
"Troy, Chad sit down." She spoke quietly with a trembling voice. "I'm afraid I have something to tell you, that you're not going to be happy about. Um…You're both friends with the Evans twins, right?" Both boys nodded. Everyone could tell that ever since Troy befriended Sharpay, he had changed and the two were closer now, than they ever were. "Guys, Sharpay was found dead this morning. She overdosed and committed suicide." Chad felt a tear run down his face at the thought of the former ice queen being dead. He had no clue why Sharpay would kill herself, him being one of her closest friends.
Troy just laughed nervously. "Mom, don't joke like that; it's not right." His face fell when he seen his mom shake her head and begin to cry. "W-why? Why mom?"
Oh, why that's what I keep asking. Was there anything I could have said or done? Oh, I had no clue you were masking a troubled soul, god only knows what went wrong and why you had to leave the stage in the middle of a song.
Now in my mind I keep you frozen as a seventeen year old, rounding third to score the winning run.
Troy lie on his bed looking at nothing but the ceiling. His mind raced frantically, searching for memories of Sharpay. The one that seemed to stand out was her softball game; the first day they really got to hang out.
"C'mon Pay!" Troy shouted at Sharpay, who was now batting. "Get a run!"
He watched as the bat she was holding made contact with the oversized baseball. The ball flew over second base where the outfielder dropped it. The crowd rooting for East High cheered as the petite blonde ran from base to base to base to home. East High had won the game.
He brought himself back to reality and looked down and whispered as a tear fell, "I'm going to miss you."
You always played with passion no matter what the game and when you took the stage, you shined just like the sun.
Troy flipped through a photo album of the past four years at East High. Since he was a senior, it was nice to remember all the good memories of his high school experience. A small picture fell out of the bottom and landed on his left leg; Sharpay smiling as she took the stage to take what was now her final bow. She looked so happy and secure about life. Everything about her was satisfying to his liking. A small smirk formed upon his face as he remembered what she had said to him that night, just three short weeks ago.
"Troysie." He brought his attention to Sharpay as she wrapped her arms around him.
"Oh, you were great up there!" Troy swung her around, lifting her feet off the ground. "I don't know how you do it."
"Duh!" She grinned from ear to ear and touched his nose. "I'm Sharpay Evans, I can do anything!"
And that was the truth. Though she was shorter than almost every other high schooler, she excelled at everything she put her mind to; softball, dance team, acting, and most of all music. She shined like the brightest star in the sky when she belted out a song she wrote and that was one of the things Troy would miss the most; her compassion for life and her confidence hidden behind those big brown eyes.
Oh, why that's what I keep asking. Was there anything I could have said or done? Oh, I had no clue you were masking a troubled soul, god only knows what went wrong and why you had to leave the stage in the middle of a song.
Now the oak trees are swaying in the early autumn breeze. The golden sun is shining on my face.
Troy Bolton stood silently as a preacher spoke words so sweet about his belated friend. He couldn't concentrate and found himself looking at all the faces of the people around him. Mr. and Mrs. Evans just stood there, obviously still in shock. Ryan was looking down at the green grass that hid itself under his black dress shoes. Mrs. Darbus closed her eyes and let a few tears flow from her glass clad eyes; she was upset to see such a promising student let herself go. All of their friends were bawling, still lingering onto their friend who was now watching over.
Through tangled thoughts, I hear a mockingbird sing. This old world really ain't that bad a place.
Troy felt a moment of peace fall over all those assembled around the newly dug grave. A grin formed on his face as the tears began to flow; the anger and sadness was back again.
Oh, Why? There's no comprehending. But who am I to try to just explain. Oh, but I still have one burning question. Who told you life wasn't worth the fight. They were wrong. They lied. But now you're gone and we cried.
He ran; ran until the cemetery was far out of view. His feet landed him at Sharpay's favorite place in Albuquerque, the community park. She loved to walk through the garden and smell the flowers. She loved everything about life and he could only find one reason that she would want to ruin hers; someone told her lies. Lies that sunk deep down below her stomach. He cursed that person and that day that made her decide that life was no longer worth it. He hated the fact that her mind was filled with all these assumptions that suicide was the best way to sew things back up and put the puzzle back together.
Troy collapsed on his knees and sung out to the sky.
"It's not like you to walk away in the middle of a song." He cried, "Your absolutely beautiful song."