Chapter three

A/N- I'm updating pretty regularly huh? That's because I love my reviewers and you're inspiring me to write more. And the part about Gabby coming into her room at night is a little random, but whatever. And also, sorry if I accidently go from 3rd person to 1st person. Sometimes it's hard to keep track because I'm not use to it.

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Here I was, sleeping prefectly peacfully until I heard an annoying tapping at my window. My first instinct usually would have been to check it out. That or scream, because, well, I'm a huge wuss. But I was just so tired and worn out from dance practice that all I could really do was simply groan a quite "Go away." But the tapping never stopped and so finally, after a minute, rolled myself out of my very comfy bed and walked to the window. I slightly shivered in my tank top and pajama bottoms. It was cold and in the middle of winter. Which is why I thought it was even more insane that there was some freak at my window. I thought over my decision for a second before grabbing a pillow for protection. I then looked down at my hands and realized how stupid I would be for hitting some creep with a pillow, so I picked up one of my glass perfume bottles, holding it overhead as I walked quitly to the window. I very carefully and slowly lifted the blind...

"Ahhh!"

"Ahhh!"

I placed a hand over my beating heart, glaring at the face in my window.. "Gabriella Montez! What is wrong with you?"

She gave me a sarcastic look. "Said the girl trying to defend herself with Brittney Spear's perfume."

I quickly set down the perfume, sitting on my bed and waiting for my head to calm down as Gabriella climbed into the room with a thud as she hit the ground. I glared at her. "What are you doing at my window at three in the morning? Are you insane? You know, I could have hurt you."

She laughed, sitting next to me on the bed. "Yeah, 'Cause I hear a good spray of perfume makes all the bad people go away." She rolled her eyes. I sighed. "No, I couldn't sleep and my mom's out of town and I have issues about being home alone."

"Then why didn't you just ask to spend the night? You know my parents aren't ever here and if they were they wouldn't care. And that stunt you pulled with the window was stupid. What did you do? Climb the ladder that was out there?"

She nodded. "Yeah. And I wasn't really thinking."

"That's obvious."

"Anyways," She continued, rolling her eyes playfully. "I like being out at night. It's fun. I was like, the only one out there. At all. You should try it sometime."

"Thanks, but I'd rather sleep then put my life in danger by walking the streets in the middle of the morning alone."

"Suit yourself." She shrugged.

I starred at her. "Who dropped you on your head as a child? Really?"

She laughed, laying back on the bed. "No one. I just kind of came out like this. But anyways, now I'm getting sleepy. Let's go to bed."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. But get off my side of the bed."

She did, laughing a bit as she rolled over on her stomache. "There."

I rolled my eyes, climing back in under the sheets and closing my eyes. "Hey Gabs?"

"Yeah?"

"Troy asked me out."

It was silent for a moment before Gabriella burst with, "What?! Sharpay Marie Evans, how could you not tell me this? I'm so dissipointed in you. Tell me everything. I want every detail. Right now, miss! Hey, wake up! Don't you dare go asleep! We need to talk about this! Shar...."

I simply rolled over, my eyes still closed. "Good night my insane little friend."

It took about half an hour until Gabriella finally let me sleep. Dang, the girl can talk.

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Sometimes I wondered if Troy Bolton really made sense to anyone, including himself. I was starting to think that him asking me out was compltely made up by myself. Just my imagination playing tricks on me. It had been three days since he had asked me out. The day after he was sick and then yesterday he just ignored me. Never said one word. I was too nervous to ask him anything. I just pretended I didn't notice as he continued to not talk to me. And today he was still doing the same. I started to wonder if he was having doubts about the dance. Maybe he found someone better to go with. What if he was just trying to tell me that he didn't like me and that-

"Shar..." Taylor's voice interrupted my thoughts suddenly, making look to her sitting across from me in the library. She gave me a curious look. "Are you okay? You look a little worried there."

I shook my head, trying to erase all thoughts of Troy Bolton from my mind. I sighed, knowing that was impossible. "Nah, I'm okay. Just worried about...um..."

"The camping trip?" Taylor guessed, a knowing smirk on her lips and I was guessing she knew exactly the real reason I was zoned out. Taylor had alwyas been much smarter than us all. I was silently grateful that she had changed the subject for me. "It's okay. I mean, the last time you did almost get eaten by a bear..." She laughed a little at the memory.

I pounted, sticking out my bottom lip and folding my arms. "It wasn't funny."

"Not according to the video on youtube. People thought it was hilarious."

"Well people are mean."

She giggled, picking up her pencil and continuing her homework. I sighed, smiling a little as I looke back down to my spanish homework. Definitly not my favorite subject.

Suddenly, I looked up to meet the blue ocean eyes of Troy Bolton himself. He was standing across the room, looking just as gorgous as always. He was starring back at me with a somewhat unreadble look, just looking at me. I bit my lip and gave him a small smile, looking back down at my paper before he could see me blush. He didn't make a noise and never did anything. I looked back up to only see his back as he quickly walked out of the library. I shook my head. "Troy Bolton's weird."

Taylor looked up and smiled. "Aren't we all."

"I think he's avoiding me." I pouted again.

She shook her head. "I don't think so. But if he is, he won't be able to much longer."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

She smirked. "See...Chad kind of invited him to go on the camping trip with us. He said yes."

I starred at her in shock. I was a little upset that the guy who was trying to avoid me was going to the camping trip, and also I was a little overjoyed that he was coming. I guess I couldn't really blame anything on Chad. I was planning on asking Troy to go with us anyways, but now...I just didn't think it would be much fun to be constantly rejected while out in the middle of nowhere together. "I guess that's...cool."

"It'll be fun. Don't worry Shar."

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"So then it went boom." Chad finished his joke at the lunch table. No one was even listening anymore. "Oh, come on. That was funny."

Taylor rolled her eyes. "It really wasn't Chad."

Ryan nodded in agreement. "Chad, you stopped being funny when those jokes did. And that was about five hundred years ago."

"You know Ryan, all these years we've been best friends and you always hurt my feelings. Over and over again. You know, sometimes I wonder if I can even be your friend anymore. It's just too painful..." Chad layed on the drama like a pro as he did a little fainters move. We all rolled our eyes at that one.

Gabriella interrupted with a big sigh and a tug on Ryan's arm. "I was gonna go hang out in the library for a while. Wanna go?"

Ryan nodded, standing up and taking Gabriella's hand. "Sure."

"Hey guys, can I come with? I still have some work I need to finish." Taylor put in. Gabriella nodded and they left the cafeteria. Now it was only Me, Chad, and Troy. Jason and Kelsi had decided to eat alone and Zeke rarely sat with us anymore since Troy got here. That part I was grateful for.

"So...you guys want to hear a joke?" Chad asked, trying to break the obvious tension. I was trying not to look at Troy and it seemed like he was doing the same. It was just so...awkward. And I still had no clue why.

"No." Troy and I said in unison. I blushed, looking down.

Chad cleared his throat. "Listen, I don't know what's going on between you two, but knock it off. One minute you're all best friends and the next you aren't speaking. Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"No." I answered quitely, looking up to meet Troy's gaze, but only for a second.

"Then what happened?"

Troy shook his head, speaking for the first time since lunch started. "Nothing happened."

"But...you guys haven't said a word to each other in two days."

Troy shrugged. "Maybe it's because we never got a chance to be alone."

I almost shot a sarcastic remark on that one, but quickly changed my mind. I had a gut feeling this wasn't about not having any time alone.

Chad, on the other hand, bought it. "Fine, then let me help. I'm going to go." He said, getting up and leaving.

I smirked at Troy. "Well...we're alone."

"You're mad at me." He observed, not questioned.

"Only a little." I replied honsetly. It was kind of hard to be mad at him. "Why have you been avoiding me?"

He sighed, suddenly seeming to find the lunch table fasinating. "I'm not avoiding..." He didn't finish his sentece because he knew it would be a lie.

"If this is about not wanting to go to the dance with me just tell me. I won't be mad. We're friends. It's not like I expected anything but that." And honestly, I hadn't. I never expected him to like me as much as I liked him.

He shook his head, suddenly looking very serious. "It's not about that. I do want to go to the dance with you. It's just that..."

"What?"

He sighed again, resting his head on the table so he wasn't looking at me. "I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

He sighed again, still not looking up. "I can't tell you."

"So...you can't tell me why you can't tell me what I don't know?"

"Yes." He muttered, his head still on the table.

"Troy, that makes no sense."

He finally looked up, a slightly pained expression in his eyes. "I know Pay, and I'm sorry. But really, this isn't about you, it's about...well, I can't really tell you that either. There's really a lot of things I can't tell you but trust me, I do want to go to the dance with you. Only you."

I bit my lip, but smiled. then I frowned, remembering everything else he had said. "But wait, why can't you tell me things? We're friends right?"

"Right. But there's things about me...that I really can't tell anyone." He paused, then whispered, "Even the ones most important to me."

I smiled again like it was a natural reaction. "Okay, I can except that...I guess."

He smiled. "Thanks. And I know I've been acting really weird lately, but trust me, when we go for our camping trip I promise I'll be back to myself. No more hiding or mystery. Okay....well, maybe a little."

I giggled a little, even though it hadn't sounded like a joke to me. "Okay. I'm holding you to that you know."

"Do you want me to draw up a contract?"

I thought about it. "You know what? It might be useful."

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Another chapter down. And the next chapter will be in Troy's POV because I'm sure some of you are curious to what he's relaly like and the things he can do. I did kind of rip off Edward when I was deciding the things he could do. But you'll see in the next chapter what I mean.

Please review.

-Peace!