this chapter is dedicated to independentHSMFAN23 cuz she's the one who came up with the perfect outline for this chapter!!

i finally got enough votes. thanks so much, u guys!

Chapter 18

The atmosphere was quiet in Gabriella's house....or rather, Gabriella's room. Her house was fairly large but the fact that maids and hired helpers were bustling around kind of killed the silence.

The household was used to it now. Gabriella had been quiet for days and this was no difference...to them anyway. But for Gabriella it was. Everytime she looked at her gigantic puppy calendar hanging on the wall, the knot inside her stomach became tighter.

Because there it was...in big, red letters...

Annual Dance Competition 6-8 pm.

She wanted to rip the calendar apart. She wanted to scream and kick and throw around everything she could get hands on. But at the same time...

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Startled, Gabriella whipped her head around to find Taylor McKessie standing in her doorway with Janine and Haley.

But that startled feeling immediately turned to gloom. "What do you guys want?"

"We want to know why the hell," Janine cut in, "you are still in your pajamas?"

"Excuse me?" Gabriella raised a perfectly arched eyebrow.

"You have a dance competition to go to," Haley reminded her. "Duh!"

"I'm not competing," Gabriella said stubbornly.

Taylor laughed. "Of course you're not. But Sharpay is. And you are joining our support committee."

"Come on," Haley said, throwing a shirt at Gabriella. "You have to come. It'll be fun."

Gabriella glared at Haley as a silent war began in her head. On one hand, she didn't want to be anywhere near the competition. On the other...

"Sharpay needs our support," Taylor pointed out. "Besides, you're her friend, right? And I made signs for u to hold, too." She showed Gabriella the backpack she was holding. "You would be wasting paper, if you didn't come."

Gabriella sighed. She couldn't argue with that anymore.

"Fine," she grumbled. "I'll be down in five."

The three others squealed with delight, leaving Gabriella alone in her room to change.

"You better come," Janine warned Gabriella before closing the door.

Gabriella rolled her eyes as she yanked her shirt on.

I'll kill them for this, she promised herself.

------

"Do you think she'll come?" Haley asked quietly as they walked down the stairs.

Janine glared in the direction of Gabriella's room. "She better. I gave up two dates and a yoga class for this!"

Taylor smiled smugly. "You girls are so negative. That's unhealthy, you know. Gabriella will come down, you'll see."

"But what if the plan doesn't work?" Haley said nervously. "Even if we do get her there, we may be too late. Or something might happen to her costume..."

Taylor shook her finger. "Uh-uh-uh. Happy thoughts, only. Besides, Gabriella might hear."

Just then Gabriella appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Can we go now?" she asked, running down to join them. "The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave."

Thankfully, she didn't notice Taylor's hand grip the strap of her backpack tighter.

-----

Sharpay glared at the clock.

"Where are they?" she whispered to herself. She was already decked out in her silk lime green waltz dress (link in profile). Her makeup was ready. Her hair was in an elegant french bun and her partner, Ryan, was ready, too.

"Hey, sis," Ryan said, looking at himself in the mirror. "Should I spike up my hair? I mean, I know we're doing the waltz and all. But I wanna stand out, you know."

Sharpay nodded. "Fine. But don't do a faux hawk. Just spike up the front. Like an asian."

Ryan nodded as he dipped his hand into his gel.

She glared at the clock. Where were the girls? They were supposed to arrive earlier. If they didn't show up--

"Sharpay?"

Sharpay opened the door. "Finally! Where have you--"

Then she noticed their number. "Where's Gabriella? She IS coming right?"

Janine sighed. "Chill. She just went to the bathroom. We sent Haley with her to make sure she doesn't bail."

Sharpay sighed of relief. She turned to Taylor.

"Do you have everything?"

Taylor nodded, handing over her backpack. "I got the tape transferred to DVD. I have the laptop, too."

"Good," Sharpay said, exhilarated. "Kelsi has everything ready in the Audio Room."

"Who's Kelsi?" Janine asked.

"I'm Kelsi," a small voice answered.

Sharpay smiled. "This is Kelsi Nielson. She goes to the Johnson's Academy, too. She wants to be a music composer. I had her set everything up since it won't look so supicious if she was caught in the Audio Room. She's in charge of the sound system and the music and everything."

"Oh," Taylor said, extending a hand. "I'm Taylor. It's great to meet you."

Kelsi smiled as she shook hands. Janine, on the other hand, couldn't stop staring. This girl was tiny! But her eyes...they seemed to big for her face. But her mouth sort of balanced everything out. She looked cute in a pixie sort of way.

Kelsi eyed the backpack. "Is the DVD in there?"

Taylor and Sharpay both nodded. Janine took out the DVD and the laptop and handed them over to Kelsi.

"Be careful with the laptop," Taylor told her. "It was expensive."

Kelsi chuckled. "Don't worry. I'll be careful."

Gabriella arrived just as Kelsi turned the corner.

"Hey, Shar," she said, putting on her I'm-really-glad-to-be-here-smile. "You look gorgeous."

Sharpay smiled. "Thanks." And you will, too, she thought as she eyed Gabriella's hair. Hmm...french braid or half pony?

----

Tiffany grinned as she applied the last coat of lipstick.

Beautiful, she thought to herself. As always.

Tiffany couldn't be any happier. Things were finally going her way. As, of course, she knew they would. Gabriella was finally out of her way, she had the first prize of the competition sewn up, and she was sure it was about time Troy would fall for her.

During the days they spend practicing, Troy hadn't warmed up to her...yet. But in just a few hours, after Troy saw how magnificent she was, holding that first place trophy, he was sure to fall for her as every other guy had done in the past.

Tiffany eyed her dress. She loved every inch of it. It was royal blue with sequins in a diagonal pattern across the front. The bottom of her skirt was covered her feathers that swished around when she turned. It had a matching choker and her shoes were studded with rhinestones of the same blue color.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

Tiffany glared. How dare they disturb her?

The door opened and her mother came in. "Tiffany, sweetie, it's time for hydration."

The girl smiled again as she reached for the glass of lemon tea.

She took the cup, mentally giving herself cheers as she congratulated on a sewn-up victory.

She raised the cup to her lips and took a sip.