The next day, at lunch, Rachael came into the cafeteria late. "What took you so long?" Cloe asked as Rachael walked over to the table. "I found something you should probably see." She responded as she sat down and pulled out a piece of paper from her backpack. "What's that?" Ryan asked her curiously. "Here." Rachael said, handing him the paper.
He took it from her and read it over quietly to himself. By the time he finished, only one word managed to escape his mouth. "Wow." He uttered at last. "I know." Rachael agreed, looking him straight in the eye. Cloe, sensing she was missing something big, gave them a questioning look and asked, "What are you two on about?"
"Um…Cloe." Ryan began as he broke his gaze with Rachael, turned to look directly into Cloe's eyes, and placed her hands in his, "Gee…I don't know how to tell you this, but…" "Just spit it out!" Cloe looked at him seriously. "I…Rachael and I… have a mystery to solve." Ryan told her, "And we have magical powers."
"And you didn't tell me this sooner!" Cloe whispered so no one could listen in on their conversation. "We didn't know about it until right now." Ryan told her as he squeezed her hands in reassurance, "You know I wouldn't lie to you."
"I know that." Cloe responded. "We'll let you read the letter after school today." Rachael told her as she grabbed the paper and placed it in her bag. "Sure." Cloe stated as she looked at her hands, which were still being held by Ryan. He looked down and noticed, but didn't let go. "Well, I better get going." Cloe stated, then turned to look at Ryan and said, "See you later tiger."
She stood up slowly, still holding Ryan's hands, leaned over to him, and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. When she separated, she released her grasp on Ryan's hands and left. As she walked, she could hear Rachael mention to Ryan, "And you deny that you're a couple." Ryan just laughed and Cloe couldn't help, but giggle to herself.
After school, the three met up outside on campus. "So, where's this letter that reveals your powers?" Cloe asked Ryan and Rachael. They were all sitting at a table on campus. "Not here, Angel." Rachael pleaded, "We'll need to get back to my house where there's less people." "Then, what are we waiting for?" Cloe questioned.
"My mother." Rachael moaned. "She's a little late." Ryan explained. "Oh." Cloe said and got up, "Well, why don't we just walk to your house?" "I'm not sure." Rachael stated. "It beats waiting here." Ryan added, "Plus, Sharpay might see us sitting here and ask questions."
"Speaking of asking questions, are you going to tell Sharpay about all of this?" Cloe asked. "Not yet." Ryan admitted a bit uneasy. "But why not?" Cloe asked a bit upset, "She may not be nice to us, but she deserves to know."
"Because she's too dangerous right now." Ryan stated, "She's not going to be able to handle it properly." "Because of the musical?" Cloe questioned. "Something like that." Ryan answered. "Speaking of which, we should get ready to audition." Rachael finally spoke up, "But right now, we have to get to my house."
"That is, if your mom gets here." Cloe said to her, "Or we could walk." "Come on, cous." Ryan said to Rachael, "Lets walk. We really don't mind." Rachael looked at Ryan, who was sitting next to her, and then at Cloe, who was standing in front of her.
"Okay." She caved, "But I have a bad feeling about this. So, lets please hurry." "Sure thing." Ryan agreed as the two got up. The three started walking across campus. Then, they heard someone behind them. "Excuse me." A soft voice stated as a hand tapped Ryan's shoulder.
The three stopped and spun around, finding themselves face to face with a very shy Gabriella Montez. "Can we help you?" Ryan asked in a not so sure tone. "I hope so." Gabriella stated, "Have you seen Sharpay?" Ryan stared at her for a minute and thought it over before finally saying, "No, but why do you need to know?"
Gabriella sighed, "I know it was her who put that article about me in Taylor's locker." "Yeah…sorry about that, but I still don't understand why…" Ryan begun before Gabriella interrupted him. "I need to talk to her." She stated. "Why?" Ryan asked. "I need to ask her about something I heard." Gabriella stated nervously.
Ryan, Rachael, and Cloe all looked at each other worriedly. "What did you hear?" Ryan asked as a wave of fear washed over him. "Oh…nothing special." Gabriella attempted to avoid the answer at all costs. "I need to know what you heard." Ryan demanded.
"I can't tell you." Gabriella told him. "Why not?" he asked her attempting to sound intimidating. "Because…" Gabriella stuttered, "it's about you." "What about me?" he questioned, now even more worried.
"I saw you at lunch when I went to talk to Kelsi. I noticed you and decided I wanted to set things straight about how much you and Sharpay kind of scare me." Gabriella began, but stopped to heave a shaky sigh, "As I got closer to your table, I noticed you and Cloe holding hands. I didn't want to interrupt anything, so I stopped and just watched you two. Then, I kind of say you two kiss. And I heard you talking about being a couple. I didn't mean to hear or see anything. Really, I didn't."
She truly looked terrified of Ryan at that moment. "Is that it?" Ryan asked as Cloe began to blush. "Yes. I'm truly sorry. I really am." Gabriella apologized, noticing Cloe's scarlet colored face, "Please, don't hurt me." "I'm not going to hurt you." Ryan eased up a bit, "I just want to know why you were going to go to Sharpay about it."
"I didn't want to embarrass you…or Cloe." Gabriella stated in a high-pitched voice, tears threatening to roll down her cheeks. "Oh, that's perfectly understandable…I think." Ryan reassured, "I'll tell you what. Cloe and I do like each other very much, but we're not dating."
"Oh, but I still think you should be." Gabriella told them calming down a bit. "Why would you say that?" Cloe asked a bit shakily. "You two were made for each other." Gabriella told them, "I guess you are a match that has a destiny of its own."
"Maybe." Cloe said. "Well, I'll see you around." Gabriella told them all and walked away. "See. I'm not the only one who thinks you two are perfect for each other." Rachael told them as the group continued walking. When they reached the sidewalk, they turned right and continued walking in the direction of Rachael's house.
"So, when can I read that letter?" Cloe asked recovering. "When we get to Zac." Rachael responded. Suddenly, there was a rustling in the bushes lining the sidewalk. Strangely, there was no one around. "It's probably a squirrel." Ryan suggested as they kept walking.
A few minutes later, there was another rustling. Still, there was no one around. A sudden breeze blew past them. "It must have been the wind." Rachael stated, "I still have a bad feeling about this." "Quit whining and keep walking." Cloe urged getting a bit creped out. "We'll be there soon." Rachael said, "I hope so." Ryan commented.
(A/N) I must let you know that I have pretty poor spelling, especially with words that I'm not even sure existed way back when my computer was built. Anywho…I hope this chapter was long enough. I told you that I promised I'd make them longer. And I always keep my promises! Well, R&R!This may not have been the most interresting chapter, but it does leave you hanging, right? There's more explanations in the next chapter. Plus, who...or what...was following them to Rachael's house? Please…or I'll end it right here and never tell you what happens to them. R&R!