Part One
Title: Unforgettable
Pairing(s): Ryan/Chad, Troy/Gabriella, Ryan/OC, Zeke/Sharpay, Kelsi/OC
Word Count: ~26K
Rating/Warnings: R, infidelity
Summary: This was pretty much the worst adrenaline rush he had ever had, and for the worst reason. So he was in the vicinity of his high school boyfriend for the first time in a decade. So what? Time had passed. Things had changed. There was nothing between them anymore.
Notes: OH MY GOSH, thanks so much to every person who helped me on this--roseclaw, perculious, vamplover82, musical_junkie, onlysayitonce, greensweaterlj... YOU ARE ALL SO AMAZING THANK YOU. :D Also thanks to queenitsy, who kind of came up with the idea of Zeke the shirtless chef. Because that would be SO GREAT. Steve Kluger gets a bit of thanks, too, as the original idea was based a lot off his novel Almost Like Being in Love. This fic is now almost nothing like it, although it's still about a dude who likes baseball and a dude who likes musicals.
Fanmix: Reasons to Stay, Reasons to Leave by mybabyangel
"And that's why, darling, it's incredible/That someone so unforgettable/Thinks that I am/Unforgettable too."
- "Unforgettable," Nat King Cole
Ryan Evans
British Literature
Mrs. Hendrix
5-15-08
Creative Writing Assignment #12
"Where do you see yourself in ten years?"
Ten years is a very long time from now, or at least it seems like it will be. By then, I will be twenty-eight years old. I could say that in that time, I will have graduated college with a business degree, married happily, had three adorable babies, and begun my own electronics store. I could say that in ten years, I will become President of the United States, or at least a very important senator for the state of New Mexico. Or maybe in ten years I will become CEO of an important company, and live alone as a confirmed bachelor in a huge house in Los Angeles.
None of those things sound as if they are in my future, though I suppose the future is a blank slate and I guess anything can happen. Who am I to say?
Here is what I would like for there to be in my future. I would like to have graduated from Juilliard. I would like to have my very own place in New York City. I would like to have met a thousand interesting people. Maybe more! Maybe I will be headlining in an up and coming new musical, or perhaps I will be a dancer for a revival of a classic one. Like, I don't know, Camelot or something. It was the first one that popped into my head. Maybe I'm just a choreographer. That would be even better than being in a musical, I think. Maybe I'll have already won a Tony. Maybe two! Maybe I'll have a row of Tonys on my mantle, like Bob Fosse must have.
Maybe ten years from now, May 15th, 2018, it will be a day like any other, and then I hear my doorbell ring and standing on my doorstep will be the love of my life, coming home from a day at work with take-out and a movie. I hope it will be a good movie. I hope they still make good movies in ten years. I think that is where I would like to be in ten years: home.
~*~
It was Thursday lunch, which was usually the day Ryan went off campus for lunch with Sharpay. But as he walked down the hall towards the doors leading out to the parking lot, he heard someone shout his name. "Hey, Evans!"
Ryan looked over his shoulder to see who was calling him. Chad jogged towards him, his curls bouncing up and down. There was a huge grin on his face, and Ryan couldn't help but grin back. To think that this time last year, Chad was the last person he'd expect to hear calling his name in a crowded hallway. Now, it was just par for the course.
"Hey," he said when the other boy caught up, one hand behind his back. Ryan lifted his chin in the direction of the hidden arm. "What's that?"
Chad pointedly ignored Ryan's question and asked one of his own instead. "Guess what, man?"
"You've decided that dancing is your one and only passion? You're completely and totally in love with my sister?"
Chad rolled his eyes. "No, and definitely no, not ever. I was going to say--did you know there's only two weeks until we graduate?" He raised his free hand for a high five, but Ryan wasn't willing to deliver quite yet.
"I was aware. You hailed me down to tell me that?" Ryan shook his head. "You're lucky you're a decent dancer, Danforth, and that I need you for the spring musical or else I'd erase you from my life completely."
"What, and find someone else to bring you delicious food?" Chad brought out the hand that he'd been hiding. In it he was clutching a bag from Chick-fil-a. "It's chicken nuggets, dude."
Ryan's grin grew even bigger, and he tried to ignore the stupid, fluttery feeling in his chest because it wasn't like he was Bella Swan or something. (Sharpay was completely obsessed with those books. They made Ryan want to shoot someone in the face. Possibly himself.)
"You brought me lunch!" He gave Chad a suspicious once-over. "Did you do something to my scooter? Are you dropping out of the musical? There has to be a reason for this."
"No reason! I promise. Say I knew you had a test today... and I wanted to make you feel better?"
Ryan didn't remember having a test. He would remember if he had had a test. He squinted at Chad, whose attention had just been claimed by something over Ryan's shoulder. Chad pulled him into an open doorway, and Ryan looked to see just what they were hiding from--and saw Troy. He looked back at Chad. "Having issues?"
Chad shrugged sheepishly. "Troy's my best friend and all, but all this worrying about Gabriella is driving me crazy. I mean, she's usually his number one favorite topic of conversation on a good day. The past couple of weeks, it's been non-stop. And Jason does nothing but study all day, and Zeke only wants to talk about whatever Sharpay wants to talk about--which, usually, is shoes--and, I don't know, just about everyone I know is making me insane."
"So... your solution was to buy me lunch?" Ryan didn't mention the part where apparently he was not one of the people currently driving Chad crazy. He hoped that was a good thing. It definitely seemed like one.
"More like, I thought if I skipped third period and bought you lunch, it might be easier to persuade you to join in a desecration of the practice rooms and eat with me there so I could avoid the Wildcats for about half an hour. I mean, you're not currently angsting over your girlfriend's college decision or passing your APs or trying to impress your sister, which makes hanging out with you sound significantly better than hanging out with everyone else."
Ryan pretended to consider this, then sighed over-gustily and said, "Sure, okay. But you have to stay away from the piano, or Kelsi will kill me."
Chad's face was all delight. Way more delight, Ryan thought self-indulgently, than something like this between friends would normally deserve. But Ryan knew better than to hope when it came to Chad. He was dating Taylor, after all, and the rather exuberant invitation she got to prom denoted more than a little affection on Chad's side. But the smile that refused to stay hidden whenever Chad was around stayed there, and Ryan allowed himself to be led to the practice rooms--and not just by the tantalizing smell of Chick-fil-a, although that helped.
It was his favorite, after all.
Chad was good at remembering things like that. Ryan wondered if he always remembered favorites and other such things when it came to all of his friends or if Ryan was just special. Not that there was any reason he should be special.
His thoughts were interrupted by Chad's voice. "You're being kind of quiet. Not gonna lie, it's weird."
"Thinking about the musical," he lied smoothly. Or so he hoped. He took out his cell phone and texted a quick note to Sharpay: sry but i cant make lunch 2day.
"Are you worried? Dude, you shouldn't be. The musical is going to rock." Ryan was about to reply when Chad added, "After all, I'm in it.
Sharpay's reply came quickly: hot date w stupid hair boy?
Ryan scoffed at Chad. "Okay, yeah, I admit it. You're basically the only reason anybody's coming to see it at all. That's why your name is biggest on the program." His hair isnt stupid. Ryan tucked his phone into his pocket.
They reached the door to the music room. As Chad turned the knob, he looked back at Ryan over his shoulder, eyes wide. "No way? It is, really?"
Ryan laughed, following Chad inside and closing the door behind him. "No, dorkbrain. As if Sharpay would allow anyone's name to be bigger than hers."
"Phew. I don't think I could take that kind of pressure." Chad slid down to sit against a wall, lotus style. Ryan sat across from him, reaching for the bag. He peeked inside and pulled out the box of chicken nuggets. Their knees were touching.
"Did you remember barbecue sauce?"
"That's like asking me if I remembered to bring my lucky sneakers to the championship game." Chad shook his head and took out his own box and two packets of barbecue sauce. He gave one to Ryan. "It's like you have no faith in me."
The food was delicious and, to Ryan's surprise, still pretty hot. He hummed happily as he chewed and then, swallowing, he asked, "So are you excited about prom tomorrow night?"
A dark expression passed over Chad's face. "I was, but then Gabriella decided she'd rather be in California. Then Jason dropped out 'cause his mom is making him study instead, which means Martha isn't going to bother, either. And Zeke isn't even going to come in the same limo as Taylor, Troy, and I. Sharpay wants to drive her car." He shrugged. "I mean, I guess it's still going to be fun--but I was hoping it would be all of us, together, you know?"
"You'll still see Zeke at the actual prom." Ryan paused before he added, "And me. And Kelsi."
Chad smiled and looked up at Ryan through his eyelashes. Ryan took a deep breath. "I know. That part will be awesome. Like I said, it'll be fun. Just not what I've been expecting." The breath came out slowly.
"Maybe that's a good thing. You never know."
"I guess."
He continued to chew thoughtfully, and it was quiet in the music room. Somehow, it wasn't awkward. Ryan could count on one hand the number of people with whom he could just sit in complete silence and not feel awkward.
The silence didn't last long though, because a few minutes later, Chad peered at Ryan's pile of uneaten waffle fries. Somehow he had inhaled all of his in the space of five minutes. "Hey, are you going to eat those?" He didn't wait for Ryan to answer before he reached over, setting his hand on Ryan's knee to balance himself, and stole a couple. Ryan laughed and flicked Chad's nose with his finger. Chad retaliated by dabbing Ryan's own nose with ketchup.
Before this year such a thought would have never entered the mind of Ryan Evans, but he almost wished that high school didn't have to end.
~*~
Chad stared at his computer screen. The little cursor blinked back at him, as if it were mocking him. At the top of the page, he had written, Where do you see yourself in ten years? The assignment was not exactly difficult--in fact, it was kind of stupid. But that didn't mean Chad wasn't stumped.
Ten years was an awfully long time. He had trouble figuring out where he saw himself in a month or at the end of summer, much less ten years. He began to type.
In ten years I hope to
His cell phone rang, an unexpected savior. The caller ID told him the call was from Troy. "Hello?"
"Dude, so, guess where I am." Troy sounded kind of weird. And waaay wired, like he was hooked up to an IV that had been feeding him nothing but fruity energy drinks for the past five hours.
"Um, your house?"
"No! I'm in Nevada!"
"Why the hell are you in Nevada? Are you going to Vegas or something?" Not that Troy seemed very much like the kind of person who would up and leave to gamble his life savings away at a sketchy casino, but Chad wasn't about to rule it out. It was entirely possible Troy Bolton had been kidnapped and replaced by a pod person.
"Nah, man," said Troy. Chad's frown got deeper and he knew what his best friend was going to say before he said it. "I'm going to see Gabriella!"
Troy sounded perfectly excited, but Chad suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe. "At Stanford?"
"Yeah! I figured, if she can't come to prom, I'm going to bring prom to her."
"That's... crazy, man. Crazy. Awesome, I guess, but you're going on my list of Craziest People Ever right up there next to, like, that girl who broke up with Jason because she said his toes were freaky-looking."
"I know," Troy said. "I know. It's the craziest fucking thing I've ever done in my life, but this is for Gabi, man. She's gotta know that I care that much."
"What, you thought she didn't already know you're completely in love with her?"
"I just have to make sure, you know?"
"I guess." Chad didn't have much to add to the conversation. He felt a little sick. Nothing was ever going to turn out the way he wanted, was it?
"Anyway, I just wanted to give you a heads-up before you freak out or something."
"Yeah... that would have sucked."
"But hey! I guess that means you and Taylor have the limo all to yourselves now. You can't see it, but I'm winking at you. Have fun, dude. I mean, that's what prom is for, right?" For what?
"Yeah... hey, Troy, I gotta go. But, um, say hi to Gabi for me. Don't get in any car accidents or anything."
"I'll try my hardest! I hope prom is awesome."
"Yeah, me too. Bye."
Chad clicked the end button on his phone. So... not even his best friend in the entire world was going to be at prom. Man, this was going to suck.
The most annoying thing was that he wasn't supposed to be all invested in prom. That was supposed to be Taylor's job. After all, that's what "A Night to Remember" was all about--the girls swooning over dresses and having perfection, while all the dudes freaked out about being forced to dance. But it wasn't exactly prom Chad was freaking out about. It was more the horrifying daily reminder that the future was coming soon and there was nothing he could do about it. And that the more he resisted, the more everyone else apparently welcomed it with open arms.
He just wasn't ready yet. He wanted high school to last just a little longer.
He sighed heavily and stood up. Glancing back at his computer screen, he saw that Taylor had sent him an IM message. It was probably something about how he had better get the right color roses for her corsage or something. Chad wasn't in the mood. He went downstairs, where his mom was watching some stupid reality television show, and sat down in the couch next to her.
She took one look at him, and he guessed the expression on his face must have been pretty pathetic because she immediately paused the TV show and said, "Okay, what's up?"
In spite of his mood, Chad felt a smile tug at the corners of his mouth. His mother knew him far too well. "Do you ever miss high school?"
The expression on his mother's face instantly changed to wistfulness. "You know, I don't even remember high school that well. I remember this one teacher I had--I adored her. She was the reason I decided to become a teacher myself. And I remember a boyfriend I had... his name was Kirk, I think? And I thought I was in love. I thought we were going to get married." She shook her head and chuckled to herself. "High school was okay. It was college that I really loved."
"Oh," was all Chad had to say in reply. He had been hoping she would make him feel better--not worse.
His mom frowned. "What's the matter, sweetheart?"
"I don't know, Mom. I'm just... worried, I guess. Like, I love high school, you know? My friends are awesome, everything's been awesome, and it's going to end. And someday I might not even remember it. That's just, I don't know, weird. I don't... I don't really want to graduate yet."
It was all stupid to begin with, but now it was all in the open and Chad felt like the hugest, lamest idiot in the world. Nobody cared this much about high school. And it wasn't even that he liked East all that much, or the teachers, or most of the kids at all. But his friends were, yeah, the only word to describe them was "awesome." And being in high school with them was the only way to ensure that he would always have them. As soon as they split off and went to different colleges all over the country....
Chad's mother opened her arms to her son, and Chad leaned willingly into them. She tugged on one of his curls. "It's all just a part of growing up, Charlie baby," she told him. "Things change. You just gotta go with the flow. If your friends are really that important, you'll still be talking to them ten, twenty years from now. I'm not saying none of you will drift apart, but it's not a given."
"Thanks," he said after a moment. It wasn't the most encouraging advice she could have given him, but it did help. "Guess what? Troy took off. He went to Stanford to see Gabriella."
"See, now, there's something that's going to last forever. Troy and Gabriella, I mean."
Chad rolled his eyes. "Even you! Everyone's so ridiculously invested in them, I swear."
"They're cute!"
"I guess. It sucks for me, though. It's not like he'll be back in time for prom."
"That's right. I guess that means you and Taylor will be riding alone in that limo." She turned to look at him with narrowed eyes. "Don't think that means you can get up to anything, young man."
Chad made a face. Oh. The thought hadn't even crossed his mind. "I swear, Mom, nothing like that's going to happen."
"It better not."
"It won't!" Chad yawned and stood up. "Thanks, Mom. Seriously. I gotta go to bed, though."
"All right. Good night, Chad. Love you."
"You too, Mama."
He left her and made his way back upstairs to work some more on his essay. It was already late, and if he didn't have it finished by Monday, he could say goodbye to his B in English.
Chad Danforth
British Literature
Mrs. Hendrix
5-19-08
Creative Writing Assignment #12
"Where do you see yourself in ten years?"
In ten years I hope to have finished college. Hopefully I'll graduate right with my best buddy, Troy Bolton. But I don't really know.
Sighing, he stopped there and went to bed.
~*~
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
5:56PM
fyi limo rides r way awkward with just 2 ppl. what do we talk about???
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
5:58PM
what do u normally talk about when ur alone with ur gf?
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:01PM
idk!! were not alone that often. & she's not my gf, we're friends
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:04PM
ask her where she got her dress or sth. tell her its cute.
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:04PM
actually that will make it sound like ur me
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:04PM
so u want me 2 sound like u
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:05PM
lol. jinx u owe me a soda. or a dance
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:10PM
u want me 2 dance w u? like @ prom?
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:11PM
yes. save the last dance 4 me.
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:12PM
aw cute. ok. will do. wat is taylor doing while ur txting me?
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:15PM
mostly glaring @ me. shit. i g2g but i'll c u there
~*~
Ryan slipped his phone back into the breast pocket of his tuxedo, grinning like he'd just been told he had won a life's supply of free hats and shoes just for being awesome. Sharpay frowned at him. "What's up with you?" she asked suspiciously.
"He's been texting a certain curly-haired basketball player," Kelsi answered for him, scooping up another spoonful of gelato, clearly struggling against getting any of it on her dress. Ryan was ready to murder her if such a thing did happen. "It's kind of ridiculously cute, actually."
"Kelsi!" Ryan protested. Maybe he would have to murder her anyway.
"What? It's not like anybody here doesn't know about your crush."
Zeke's Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and he raised his hand timidly. "I didn't."
"That's because you're not very observant, dear," said Sharpay, patting his cheek.
Zeke didn't protest. Mostly because it was a pretty true assessment. He shrugged and went back to inhaling his dessert. "I bet I could make homemade gelato," he said after savoring the last bite. "I'd just have to get the recipe... I wonder if it's like making ice cream. I've only made ice cream once, but it's actually pretty easy."
Kelsi, being naturally sweet and caring, seemed to actually be listening. Ryan saw that she was about to reply when Sharpay interrupted. "Why Danforth?" she asked. "He's not even one of the good jocks, like Zeke. Or Bolton, I guess."
"Thanks," said Zeke, raising one eyebrow.
"You're cute enough," replied Sharpay in a manner that was supposed to be flippant, but sounded more affectionate than Ryan was sure she wanted it to. She didn't let him comment, however. "Ryan? Answers. Now."
"Chad's cute, too," answered Ryan. "You know, for a sports-obsessed peon."
"Sports-obsessed peons can be awesome! You just never give us a chance," Zeke said. "Although, I guess I'm not that sports-obsessed. Just tall and a basketball player by default."
"Definitely a peon, though," teased Sharpay. Ryan rolled his eyes. His sister was being way too adorable with her boyfriend, and that was always a pretty disgusting sight to behold. "Anyway," she continued, "'cute' isn't enough. You have to give us more, Ryan. Prove that Chad is worthy of your fabulousness."
Ryan shrugged. "He buys me lunch. And he's, I don't know, kind of sweet." Did he really just use the word "sweet" to describe Chad Danforth? He could feel his cheeks warm. He finished off his gelato without looking up at the others at the table.
"He bought you lunch? When?" Kelsi sounded a little excited.
"Um," Ryan was trying very hard not to lick his spoon, the gelato was seriously that delicious, "yesterday?"
"I wondered where you'd gone." Now Kelsi sounded smug.
Ryan had been about to give her a really witty answer that would wipe the frustrating all-knowing smirk off her face, like maybe I wondered where your mom had gone, but just then the waiter came by with their check, and by the time they'd all paid, the time for comebacks had passed. Kelsi still looked smug, though, and kept making comments about whether she should be jealous when her date would be stolen from her later that night.
"Oh, speaking of," Ryan said as they climbed into Sharpay's ridiculous car, "he asked me to save a dance. For him, I mean." Now that everyone knew about his big gay crush, he saw no point in keeping everything to himself. This kind of stuff was too good.
"He's become a much better dancer since you've been working with him for the musical," Zeke helpfully observed as Sharpay sped out of the parking lot, forcing all passengers to hold tightly onto whatever anchors they could find in the car.
It would be a miracle if they all made it to prom in one piece.
~*~
Compared to the excruciating awkwardness that had been the limousine ride, the pre-prom dinner with Taylor was actually kind of nice. They rarely spent much time together, despite everyone's assumptions that they were seriously dating, and Chad sometimes forgot that Taylor was actually pretty awesome. After she had told him a funny story about how her little sister had gotten herself lost in a Target last weekend, he grinned at her and said, "You know, I'm going to miss you."
She looked a little taken aback, but there was a smile on her face. "That's sweet, Chad. I'm going to miss you too. Even if you are hopelessly oblivious."
"I am?" Chad thought about it.
"Um, hello? I've been pointedly making your life hell since, like, sophomore year. And you only just caught on in the past few months."
Chad chuckled. "I'm not good at subtle."
"I'm anything but subtle."
"I'm not very good at overt, either."
The check came by and Chad shelled out the money. When they stood, Chad offered his arm to Taylor, which she graciously took.
"I guess not." Taylor did the little thing where she rolled her eyes, shook her head, and looked all affectionate and everything, all at the same time. "In any case, I guess it's for the better that you never did catch on. I had time to prepare myself for the possibility that we're not actually meant to be."
"Aw, come on, Tay. We were meant to be friends. Really good friends."
"Do you consider me to be one of your good friends?" She looked up at him, seeming both surprised and pleased by the thought.
"You're pretty much my favorite girl in the entire world," he replied. "Well, besides my mom. And my little sister. And my grandma, because my grandma's badass. But disregarding family, you're right up there. Look, there's the limo."
~*~
To: triplethreat14@ehs.edu
From: captainwildcat@ehs.edu
Subject: sup
hey chad
just wanted to tell u i'm here in stanford
it's beautiful here! i definitely wouldn't mind living here
gabriella is beautiful too :)
i'm sorry i'm missing prom :( but i bet u and taylor are having fun :)
probs more than gabi and me bc she has all this studying to do
see you bro
troy
p.s. tell kelsi & ryan that we're going to try our hardest to make it back in time for the musical 2mrw nite
if not we're SO SORRY bc we know theyve worked soooooo hard :(
~*~
It was nothing like any teen drama he'd ever watched on television (involuntarily, only because his sister had left the TV on, like, the romantic comedy channel and Chad had nothing better to do). He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Mostly, it was boring. He danced a few times with Taylor, a few times with Kelsi, and even once with Sharpay. Martha had decided to come after all, not with Jason but instead with her sophomore cousin. One of the guys from the academic decathlon team had found Taylor and apparently insisted on dancing with her all night long, which she clearly didn't mind, so neither did Chad. During some of the fast songs, they all gathered in a circle and danced wildly. Mostly, though, Chad sort of hung out on the sidelines. He was definitely being a lame wallflower, but he had come not expecting to have fun, and now he wasn't having fun. Surprise.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw that he had a text message from Ryan.
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
11:18PM
i saved that dance 4 u.
Oh, and there was that. In addition to how time wouldn't stop and let Chad hang onto high school for just that much longer, and how everything was changing, and how he hated it because it was terrifying--there was the equally terrifying problem that was Chad's feelings for Ryan. They had been building up all year long--it had started last summer at Lava Springs, and it had been gradual--but now scenes like the one just this past Thursday were a dime a dozen. Ryan was not 100% Wildcat. He hadn't been a staple of Chad's life for the past four years, at least not in the same capacity as Chad's other friends had been.
Ryan was different. Ryan was fascinating. Ryan was really attractive. Chad was ready to face the fact that he wasn't completely straight. All of these things, Chad found, resulted in a very different relationship than he had with the team or with anyone else in his life. They were always flirting, always touching. When Chad had a thought he wanted someone else to hear, sure, sometimes he told Troy, but more often than not Ryan was his first choice. When they watched movies together, Chad found himself doing that slightly obnoxious thing where every time he laughed, he wanted to make sure Ryan was laughing too.
Sometimes Ryan did the same thing at the same time, and their eyes would lock. Chad would turn away quickly, and if the room wasn't too dark, Chad could look out of the corner of his eye and see the shells of Ryan's ears turning red.
It was almost summer, and Chad was stuck in that strange pre-graduation vortex where everything was changing but nothing had changed yet. There was still time.
He took a deep breath and texted back.
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
11:22PM
hey. do u want 2 blow this Popsicle stand (ha ha) and meet me outside by the fountain?
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
11:24PM
give me 2 mins & i'll be there.
Chad found Taylor and the academic decathalon boy twirling to the sound of Rihanna. He nodded at the boy, who nodded back, and Chad tapped on Taylor's shoulder. "Hey, Taylor," he yelled over the beat of the music. "I'm going outside for a bit. Call me when you wanna go, okay?"
She gave him the thumbs up and winked before twirling back to her dance partner. It was Chad's turn to do the affectionate eye-rolling/head-shaking combo. He put his hands in his pockets and made his way outside, where people were talking without shouting now that they could hear each other.
Ryan was standing under a lamp post, as distantly as possible from the groups of boys and girls flirting with each other. He held his jacket with one finger, slung over one shoulder, and had his other hand in his pocket. He looked like he'd walked straight out of an old musical. Not that Chad had ever watched one. He grinned when he saw Chad approaching.
"Fancy seeing you here," he said, tipping his hat with the hand that had been in his pocket.
"I come often," Chad replied, shrugging. "Thought I'd drop by."
"Did you really want to dance with me?" asked Ryan. "I didn't think so, but your text--"
Chad shook his head. "I don't really want to dance. I just didn't want to be there anymore."
Ryan nodded, but if Chad didn't know better, Ryan looked a little disappointed. "I understand. Sucks about the Troy thing." He looked up at the sky and then back down, into Chad's eyes. "You really wanted this to be perfect, didn't you?"
Ryan was the only person Chad could admit that to without feeling like a complete lameass. "Yeah, I did. I don't know, it's supposed to be our night to remember, right? And all that. I don't know, I thought it was supposed to be more awesome thanm this."
"Well, what I think you need," Ryan pulled his jacket back on and angled his hat to the other side, "is to stop moping. I don't care whether you want to dance or not, it's going to happen. And it's going to be fun." He offered Chad his hand.
Chad hesitated. He glanced back at the other kids standing around. They could turn around and see them dancing like idiots at any moment. It totally wasn't what you were supposed to do at prom. Did he care?
Everything was changing.
Chad took Ryan's hand and rested his other on Ryan's shoulder. "What kind of dance are we going to do?" he asked.
"Does it matter? Just feel it." They weren't doing any special kind of dance. They were just swaying together. It felt nice.
"There's no music," Chad pointed out.
"That's true." Ryan was quiet for a moment, before he began to sing quietly into Chad's ear. It wasn't a song Chad recognized, but he could tell it was from a musical. "If I loved you/time and again I would try to say/all I wanted you to know." They were moving away from the lamp post so that its light wasn't shining down on them anymore.
Chad forgot about the other people standing outside, just nearby. He forgot about the people laughing and dancing and probably having the times of their lives inside the gym. "If I loved you/words wouldn't come in an easy way/round in circles I'd go." Chad pulled his head away just enough to see Ryan's face fully. His eyes were so big, and he looked straight into Chad's own as he sang, "Longing to tell you/but afraid and shy/I'd let my golden chances--"
Chad kissed him. Ryan's lips were warm, and they opened under Chad's mouth in surprise but not in protest. Chad pushed his fingers into the hair at the back of Ryan's head, and he could feel Ryan's arm pull him closer by the waist. Their other hands were still clasped together at their side. Ryan's tongue swept into Chad's mouth, licking at intimate places few people had ever been before. Chad sucked on it, and Ryan made a tiny sound that Chad loved, nibbling at Chad's bottom lip. It wasn't perfect, but it was pretty wonderful nonetheless, at least in Chad's opinion.
When they came up for air, they didn't say a word to each other. Chad wasn't sure what words could precisely do justice to how he felt. He settled for just grinning at Ryan instead. Ryan beamed back.
~*~
5-23-2008
FINAL REPORT CARD
Charles Robert Danforth
Grade 12
DOB 10/15/1990
ID# 15603
US Government - 3.8 (A)
British Literature - 2.9 (C+)
Trigonometry - 3.5 (B)
Chemistry - 3.0 (B-)
Spanish III - 3.0 (B-)
Drama - 4.0 (A+)
~*~
Gabriella Montez is in Stanford but she misses everyone! :)
last updated on May 16, 2008
Zeke Baylor is baking cookies for the post-graduation party tonight! they're Snickerdoodles, guys, get excited...
May 23, 2008 at 3:55pm
Sharpay Evans posted a picture.
Me and Boi in matching graduation gowns!!
May 23, 2008 at 3:52pm
Ryan Evans is now In a Relationship.
May 23, 2008 at 3:45pm
Ryan Evans commented on Chad Danforth's wall:
pretty sure you have no one to blame but yourself ;)
<3
May 23, 2008 at 3:36pm
Troy Bolton commented on Chad Danforth's wall:
duuuuuude, ANSWER YOUR PHONE. Call me asap.
May 23, 2008 at 3:33pm
Jason Cross is graduating high school tonight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 23, 2008 at 3:27pm
Kelsi Nielsen commented on Chad Danforth's wall:
IT WAS ABOUT TIME :o)
May 23, 2008 at 3:26pm
Chad Danforth is now In a Relationship.
May 23, 2008 at 3:19pm
Chad Danforth commented on Ryan Evans's wall:
i just got my report card..........pretty sure it's your fault i didn't get a b in english--i never had time to finish my essay ;)
May 23, 2008 at 3:15pm
~*~
Summer was amazing. That was the only way either Chad or Ryan could think to describe it. Neither of them had ever been in love before, at least not like this. Ryan was the happiest he'd been for a very long time. It was the happiest Chad had been in his life. But eventually, summer had to end. In August, Ryan left for school.
The afternoon before the morning Ryan's plane was scheduled to take off, they exchanged see you laters at Chad's house. They sat across from each other on Chad's bed with the stupid Batman sheets Ryan had come to love so dearly. Chad was picking at an invisible thread on his pillowcase and refused to look up at Ryan as Ryan lauded every inch of Juilliard's existence.
Finally, Ryan was fed up. "Don't look so sad, Chad," he chastised him, rolling his eyes. "It's not like you'll never see me again."
"It's a long time until December," Chad replied, though he looked sheepish. "I don't know, I guess I'm just worried you'll meet some ridiculously attractive ballet dancer and you'll be all, 'Who's Chad Danforth? I've never heard of him,' and a million years later I'll run into you in New York--"
"As you do--"
"Right, and I'll see you in Starbucks or something, and you'll be 'Oh, I recognize you! You were in one of my classes at Juilliard, right?' and I'll say--"
"'No, you're the jerk who left me behind in Albuquerque, I hate you, you bastard.' Right?" Ryan couldn't help laughing. "Your imagination is a pretty interesting place, Chad."
Chad looked at him then. They locked gazes, and Ryan stopped laughing. He suddenly felt breathless, as his boyfriend often tended to make him feel. They just sat there, staring at each other, Chad's sad brown eyes making Ryan want to kiss him until he never felt sad again. He reached for Chad's t-shirt and wrapped his fist in the fabric, pulling him closer so that he could press his own lips to Chad's.
Chad reacted quickly. They had exchanged so many kisses in the past few months, Ryan thought they might grow tired of it, but they never did. It was still too new to be too familiar, but not so new that Ryan didn't know that Chad would always tilt his head to the left first or that Chad would reach up to touch Ryan's hair at the nape of his neck, or that if they really got into it, somehow their teeth would always click together at least once because no matter how graceful Ryan was on stage or Chad was on the court, neither of them were perfect.
Without removing his mouth from Chad's, Ryan pushed him backward so that he was on top. His leg fell between Chad's knees, a movement to which Chad reacted with enthusiasm. Ryan tugged on one of Chad's curls, laughing into Chad's mouth. It was sweet and slow and lovely, but Ryan couldn't shake the feeling that it was also tinged with shades of sadness and desperation.
It might have been a few minutes or a few hours when Chad pulled away. Their t-shirts had disappeared, and Ryan had ended up on the bottom. He frowned up at Chad.
"I love you." Chad said it so quietly that Ryan wasn't sure how he'd heard it. It wasn't the first time he'd said it, but this time it sounded a lot heavier and more important than it had before.
"I'll miss you," Ryan replied after a long moment. "At least until December."
"Yeah." Chad leaned down and kissed Ryan's jaw. "December."
Part Two
Pairing(s): Ryan/Chad, Troy/Gabriella, Ryan/OC, Zeke/Sharpay, Kelsi/OC
Word Count: ~26K
Rating/Warnings: R, infidelity
Summary: This was pretty much the worst adrenaline rush he had ever had, and for the worst reason. So he was in the vicinity of his high school boyfriend for the first time in a decade. So what? Time had passed. Things had changed. There was nothing between them anymore.
Notes: OH MY GOSH, thanks so much to every person who helped me on this--roseclaw, perculious, vamplover82, musical_junkie, onlysayitonce, greensweaterlj... YOU ARE ALL SO AMAZING THANK YOU. :D Also thanks to queenitsy, who kind of came up with the idea of Zeke the shirtless chef. Because that would be SO GREAT. Steve Kluger gets a bit of thanks, too, as the original idea was based a lot off his novel Almost Like Being in Love. This fic is now almost nothing like it, although it's still about a dude who likes baseball and a dude who likes musicals.
Fanmix: Reasons to Stay, Reasons to Leave by mybabyangel
"And that's why, darling, it's incredible/That someone so unforgettable/Thinks that I am/Unforgettable too."
- "Unforgettable," Nat King Cole
Ryan Evans
British Literature
Mrs. Hendrix
5-15-08
Creative Writing Assignment #12
"Where do you see yourself in ten years?"
Ten years is a very long time from now, or at least it seems like it will be. By then, I will be twenty-eight years old. I could say that in that time, I will have graduated college with a business degree, married happily, had three adorable babies, and begun my own electronics store. I could say that in ten years, I will become President of the United States, or at least a very important senator for the state of New Mexico. Or maybe in ten years I will become CEO of an important company, and live alone as a confirmed bachelor in a huge house in Los Angeles.
None of those things sound as if they are in my future, though I suppose the future is a blank slate and I guess anything can happen. Who am I to say?
Here is what I would like for there to be in my future. I would like to have graduated from Juilliard. I would like to have my very own place in New York City. I would like to have met a thousand interesting people. Maybe more! Maybe I will be headlining in an up and coming new musical, or perhaps I will be a dancer for a revival of a classic one. Like, I don't know, Camelot or something. It was the first one that popped into my head. Maybe I'm just a choreographer. That would be even better than being in a musical, I think. Maybe I'll have already won a Tony. Maybe two! Maybe I'll have a row of Tonys on my mantle, like Bob Fosse must have.
Maybe ten years from now, May 15th, 2018, it will be a day like any other, and then I hear my doorbell ring and standing on my doorstep will be the love of my life, coming home from a day at work with take-out and a movie. I hope it will be a good movie. I hope they still make good movies in ten years. I think that is where I would like to be in ten years: home.
~*~
It was Thursday lunch, which was usually the day Ryan went off campus for lunch with Sharpay. But as he walked down the hall towards the doors leading out to the parking lot, he heard someone shout his name. "Hey, Evans!"
Ryan looked over his shoulder to see who was calling him. Chad jogged towards him, his curls bouncing up and down. There was a huge grin on his face, and Ryan couldn't help but grin back. To think that this time last year, Chad was the last person he'd expect to hear calling his name in a crowded hallway. Now, it was just par for the course.
"Hey," he said when the other boy caught up, one hand behind his back. Ryan lifted his chin in the direction of the hidden arm. "What's that?"
Chad pointedly ignored Ryan's question and asked one of his own instead. "Guess what, man?"
"You've decided that dancing is your one and only passion? You're completely and totally in love with my sister?"
Chad rolled his eyes. "No, and definitely no, not ever. I was going to say--did you know there's only two weeks until we graduate?" He raised his free hand for a high five, but Ryan wasn't willing to deliver quite yet.
"I was aware. You hailed me down to tell me that?" Ryan shook his head. "You're lucky you're a decent dancer, Danforth, and that I need you for the spring musical or else I'd erase you from my life completely."
"What, and find someone else to bring you delicious food?" Chad brought out the hand that he'd been hiding. In it he was clutching a bag from Chick-fil-a. "It's chicken nuggets, dude."
Ryan's grin grew even bigger, and he tried to ignore the stupid, fluttery feeling in his chest because it wasn't like he was Bella Swan or something. (Sharpay was completely obsessed with those books. They made Ryan want to shoot someone in the face. Possibly himself.)
"You brought me lunch!" He gave Chad a suspicious once-over. "Did you do something to my scooter? Are you dropping out of the musical? There has to be a reason for this."
"No reason! I promise. Say I knew you had a test today... and I wanted to make you feel better?"
Ryan didn't remember having a test. He would remember if he had had a test. He squinted at Chad, whose attention had just been claimed by something over Ryan's shoulder. Chad pulled him into an open doorway, and Ryan looked to see just what they were hiding from--and saw Troy. He looked back at Chad. "Having issues?"
Chad shrugged sheepishly. "Troy's my best friend and all, but all this worrying about Gabriella is driving me crazy. I mean, she's usually his number one favorite topic of conversation on a good day. The past couple of weeks, it's been non-stop. And Jason does nothing but study all day, and Zeke only wants to talk about whatever Sharpay wants to talk about--which, usually, is shoes--and, I don't know, just about everyone I know is making me insane."
"So... your solution was to buy me lunch?" Ryan didn't mention the part where apparently he was not one of the people currently driving Chad crazy. He hoped that was a good thing. It definitely seemed like one.
"More like, I thought if I skipped third period and bought you lunch, it might be easier to persuade you to join in a desecration of the practice rooms and eat with me there so I could avoid the Wildcats for about half an hour. I mean, you're not currently angsting over your girlfriend's college decision or passing your APs or trying to impress your sister, which makes hanging out with you sound significantly better than hanging out with everyone else."
Ryan pretended to consider this, then sighed over-gustily and said, "Sure, okay. But you have to stay away from the piano, or Kelsi will kill me."
Chad's face was all delight. Way more delight, Ryan thought self-indulgently, than something like this between friends would normally deserve. But Ryan knew better than to hope when it came to Chad. He was dating Taylor, after all, and the rather exuberant invitation she got to prom denoted more than a little affection on Chad's side. But the smile that refused to stay hidden whenever Chad was around stayed there, and Ryan allowed himself to be led to the practice rooms--and not just by the tantalizing smell of Chick-fil-a, although that helped.
It was his favorite, after all.
Chad was good at remembering things like that. Ryan wondered if he always remembered favorites and other such things when it came to all of his friends or if Ryan was just special. Not that there was any reason he should be special.
His thoughts were interrupted by Chad's voice. "You're being kind of quiet. Not gonna lie, it's weird."
"Thinking about the musical," he lied smoothly. Or so he hoped. He took out his cell phone and texted a quick note to Sharpay: sry but i cant make lunch 2day.
"Are you worried? Dude, you shouldn't be. The musical is going to rock." Ryan was about to reply when Chad added, "After all, I'm in it.
Sharpay's reply came quickly: hot date w stupid hair boy?
Ryan scoffed at Chad. "Okay, yeah, I admit it. You're basically the only reason anybody's coming to see it at all. That's why your name is biggest on the program." His hair isnt stupid. Ryan tucked his phone into his pocket.
They reached the door to the music room. As Chad turned the knob, he looked back at Ryan over his shoulder, eyes wide. "No way? It is, really?"
Ryan laughed, following Chad inside and closing the door behind him. "No, dorkbrain. As if Sharpay would allow anyone's name to be bigger than hers."
"Phew. I don't think I could take that kind of pressure." Chad slid down to sit against a wall, lotus style. Ryan sat across from him, reaching for the bag. He peeked inside and pulled out the box of chicken nuggets. Their knees were touching.
"Did you remember barbecue sauce?"
"That's like asking me if I remembered to bring my lucky sneakers to the championship game." Chad shook his head and took out his own box and two packets of barbecue sauce. He gave one to Ryan. "It's like you have no faith in me."
The food was delicious and, to Ryan's surprise, still pretty hot. He hummed happily as he chewed and then, swallowing, he asked, "So are you excited about prom tomorrow night?"
A dark expression passed over Chad's face. "I was, but then Gabriella decided she'd rather be in California. Then Jason dropped out 'cause his mom is making him study instead, which means Martha isn't going to bother, either. And Zeke isn't even going to come in the same limo as Taylor, Troy, and I. Sharpay wants to drive her car." He shrugged. "I mean, I guess it's still going to be fun--but I was hoping it would be all of us, together, you know?"
"You'll still see Zeke at the actual prom." Ryan paused before he added, "And me. And Kelsi."
Chad smiled and looked up at Ryan through his eyelashes. Ryan took a deep breath. "I know. That part will be awesome. Like I said, it'll be fun. Just not what I've been expecting." The breath came out slowly.
"Maybe that's a good thing. You never know."
"I guess."
He continued to chew thoughtfully, and it was quiet in the music room. Somehow, it wasn't awkward. Ryan could count on one hand the number of people with whom he could just sit in complete silence and not feel awkward.
The silence didn't last long though, because a few minutes later, Chad peered at Ryan's pile of uneaten waffle fries. Somehow he had inhaled all of his in the space of five minutes. "Hey, are you going to eat those?" He didn't wait for Ryan to answer before he reached over, setting his hand on Ryan's knee to balance himself, and stole a couple. Ryan laughed and flicked Chad's nose with his finger. Chad retaliated by dabbing Ryan's own nose with ketchup.
Before this year such a thought would have never entered the mind of Ryan Evans, but he almost wished that high school didn't have to end.
~*~
Chad stared at his computer screen. The little cursor blinked back at him, as if it were mocking him. At the top of the page, he had written, Where do you see yourself in ten years? The assignment was not exactly difficult--in fact, it was kind of stupid. But that didn't mean Chad wasn't stumped.
Ten years was an awfully long time. He had trouble figuring out where he saw himself in a month or at the end of summer, much less ten years. He began to type.
In ten years I hope to
His cell phone rang, an unexpected savior. The caller ID told him the call was from Troy. "Hello?"
"Dude, so, guess where I am." Troy sounded kind of weird. And waaay wired, like he was hooked up to an IV that had been feeding him nothing but fruity energy drinks for the past five hours.
"Um, your house?"
"No! I'm in Nevada!"
"Why the hell are you in Nevada? Are you going to Vegas or something?" Not that Troy seemed very much like the kind of person who would up and leave to gamble his life savings away at a sketchy casino, but Chad wasn't about to rule it out. It was entirely possible Troy Bolton had been kidnapped and replaced by a pod person.
"Nah, man," said Troy. Chad's frown got deeper and he knew what his best friend was going to say before he said it. "I'm going to see Gabriella!"
Troy sounded perfectly excited, but Chad suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe. "At Stanford?"
"Yeah! I figured, if she can't come to prom, I'm going to bring prom to her."
"That's... crazy, man. Crazy. Awesome, I guess, but you're going on my list of Craziest People Ever right up there next to, like, that girl who broke up with Jason because she said his toes were freaky-looking."
"I know," Troy said. "I know. It's the craziest fucking thing I've ever done in my life, but this is for Gabi, man. She's gotta know that I care that much."
"What, you thought she didn't already know you're completely in love with her?"
"I just have to make sure, you know?"
"I guess." Chad didn't have much to add to the conversation. He felt a little sick. Nothing was ever going to turn out the way he wanted, was it?
"Anyway, I just wanted to give you a heads-up before you freak out or something."
"Yeah... that would have sucked."
"But hey! I guess that means you and Taylor have the limo all to yourselves now. You can't see it, but I'm winking at you. Have fun, dude. I mean, that's what prom is for, right?" For what?
"Yeah... hey, Troy, I gotta go. But, um, say hi to Gabi for me. Don't get in any car accidents or anything."
"I'll try my hardest! I hope prom is awesome."
"Yeah, me too. Bye."
Chad clicked the end button on his phone. So... not even his best friend in the entire world was going to be at prom. Man, this was going to suck.
The most annoying thing was that he wasn't supposed to be all invested in prom. That was supposed to be Taylor's job. After all, that's what "A Night to Remember" was all about--the girls swooning over dresses and having perfection, while all the dudes freaked out about being forced to dance. But it wasn't exactly prom Chad was freaking out about. It was more the horrifying daily reminder that the future was coming soon and there was nothing he could do about it. And that the more he resisted, the more everyone else apparently welcomed it with open arms.
He just wasn't ready yet. He wanted high school to last just a little longer.
He sighed heavily and stood up. Glancing back at his computer screen, he saw that Taylor had sent him an IM message. It was probably something about how he had better get the right color roses for her corsage or something. Chad wasn't in the mood. He went downstairs, where his mom was watching some stupid reality television show, and sat down in the couch next to her.
She took one look at him, and he guessed the expression on his face must have been pretty pathetic because she immediately paused the TV show and said, "Okay, what's up?"
In spite of his mood, Chad felt a smile tug at the corners of his mouth. His mother knew him far too well. "Do you ever miss high school?"
The expression on his mother's face instantly changed to wistfulness. "You know, I don't even remember high school that well. I remember this one teacher I had--I adored her. She was the reason I decided to become a teacher myself. And I remember a boyfriend I had... his name was Kirk, I think? And I thought I was in love. I thought we were going to get married." She shook her head and chuckled to herself. "High school was okay. It was college that I really loved."
"Oh," was all Chad had to say in reply. He had been hoping she would make him feel better--not worse.
His mom frowned. "What's the matter, sweetheart?"
"I don't know, Mom. I'm just... worried, I guess. Like, I love high school, you know? My friends are awesome, everything's been awesome, and it's going to end. And someday I might not even remember it. That's just, I don't know, weird. I don't... I don't really want to graduate yet."
It was all stupid to begin with, but now it was all in the open and Chad felt like the hugest, lamest idiot in the world. Nobody cared this much about high school. And it wasn't even that he liked East all that much, or the teachers, or most of the kids at all. But his friends were, yeah, the only word to describe them was "awesome." And being in high school with them was the only way to ensure that he would always have them. As soon as they split off and went to different colleges all over the country....
Chad's mother opened her arms to her son, and Chad leaned willingly into them. She tugged on one of his curls. "It's all just a part of growing up, Charlie baby," she told him. "Things change. You just gotta go with the flow. If your friends are really that important, you'll still be talking to them ten, twenty years from now. I'm not saying none of you will drift apart, but it's not a given."
"Thanks," he said after a moment. It wasn't the most encouraging advice she could have given him, but it did help. "Guess what? Troy took off. He went to Stanford to see Gabriella."
"See, now, there's something that's going to last forever. Troy and Gabriella, I mean."
Chad rolled his eyes. "Even you! Everyone's so ridiculously invested in them, I swear."
"They're cute!"
"I guess. It sucks for me, though. It's not like he'll be back in time for prom."
"That's right. I guess that means you and Taylor will be riding alone in that limo." She turned to look at him with narrowed eyes. "Don't think that means you can get up to anything, young man."
Chad made a face. Oh. The thought hadn't even crossed his mind. "I swear, Mom, nothing like that's going to happen."
"It better not."
"It won't!" Chad yawned and stood up. "Thanks, Mom. Seriously. I gotta go to bed, though."
"All right. Good night, Chad. Love you."
"You too, Mama."
He left her and made his way back upstairs to work some more on his essay. It was already late, and if he didn't have it finished by Monday, he could say goodbye to his B in English.
Chad Danforth
British Literature
Mrs. Hendrix
5-19-08
Creative Writing Assignment #12
"Where do you see yourself in ten years?"
In ten years I hope to have finished college. Hopefully I'll graduate right with my best buddy, Troy Bolton. But I don't really know.
Sighing, he stopped there and went to bed.
~*~
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
5:56PM
fyi limo rides r way awkward with just 2 ppl. what do we talk about???
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
5:58PM
what do u normally talk about when ur alone with ur gf?
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:01PM
idk!! were not alone that often. & she's not my gf, we're friends
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:04PM
ask her where she got her dress or sth. tell her its cute.
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:04PM
actually that will make it sound like ur me
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:04PM
so u want me 2 sound like u
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:05PM
lol. jinx u owe me a soda. or a dance
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:10PM
u want me 2 dance w u? like @ prom?
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:11PM
yes. save the last dance 4 me.
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
6:12PM
aw cute. ok. will do. wat is taylor doing while ur txting me?
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
6:15PM
mostly glaring @ me. shit. i g2g but i'll c u there
~*~
Ryan slipped his phone back into the breast pocket of his tuxedo, grinning like he'd just been told he had won a life's supply of free hats and shoes just for being awesome. Sharpay frowned at him. "What's up with you?" she asked suspiciously.
"He's been texting a certain curly-haired basketball player," Kelsi answered for him, scooping up another spoonful of gelato, clearly struggling against getting any of it on her dress. Ryan was ready to murder her if such a thing did happen. "It's kind of ridiculously cute, actually."
"Kelsi!" Ryan protested. Maybe he would have to murder her anyway.
"What? It's not like anybody here doesn't know about your crush."
Zeke's Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and he raised his hand timidly. "I didn't."
"That's because you're not very observant, dear," said Sharpay, patting his cheek.
Zeke didn't protest. Mostly because it was a pretty true assessment. He shrugged and went back to inhaling his dessert. "I bet I could make homemade gelato," he said after savoring the last bite. "I'd just have to get the recipe... I wonder if it's like making ice cream. I've only made ice cream once, but it's actually pretty easy."
Kelsi, being naturally sweet and caring, seemed to actually be listening. Ryan saw that she was about to reply when Sharpay interrupted. "Why Danforth?" she asked. "He's not even one of the good jocks, like Zeke. Or Bolton, I guess."
"Thanks," said Zeke, raising one eyebrow.
"You're cute enough," replied Sharpay in a manner that was supposed to be flippant, but sounded more affectionate than Ryan was sure she wanted it to. She didn't let him comment, however. "Ryan? Answers. Now."
"Chad's cute, too," answered Ryan. "You know, for a sports-obsessed peon."
"Sports-obsessed peons can be awesome! You just never give us a chance," Zeke said. "Although, I guess I'm not that sports-obsessed. Just tall and a basketball player by default."
"Definitely a peon, though," teased Sharpay. Ryan rolled his eyes. His sister was being way too adorable with her boyfriend, and that was always a pretty disgusting sight to behold. "Anyway," she continued, "'cute' isn't enough. You have to give us more, Ryan. Prove that Chad is worthy of your fabulousness."
Ryan shrugged. "He buys me lunch. And he's, I don't know, kind of sweet." Did he really just use the word "sweet" to describe Chad Danforth? He could feel his cheeks warm. He finished off his gelato without looking up at the others at the table.
"He bought you lunch? When?" Kelsi sounded a little excited.
"Um," Ryan was trying very hard not to lick his spoon, the gelato was seriously that delicious, "yesterday?"
"I wondered where you'd gone." Now Kelsi sounded smug.
Ryan had been about to give her a really witty answer that would wipe the frustrating all-knowing smirk off her face, like maybe I wondered where your mom had gone, but just then the waiter came by with their check, and by the time they'd all paid, the time for comebacks had passed. Kelsi still looked smug, though, and kept making comments about whether she should be jealous when her date would be stolen from her later that night.
"Oh, speaking of," Ryan said as they climbed into Sharpay's ridiculous car, "he asked me to save a dance. For him, I mean." Now that everyone knew about his big gay crush, he saw no point in keeping everything to himself. This kind of stuff was too good.
"He's become a much better dancer since you've been working with him for the musical," Zeke helpfully observed as Sharpay sped out of the parking lot, forcing all passengers to hold tightly onto whatever anchors they could find in the car.
It would be a miracle if they all made it to prom in one piece.
~*~
Compared to the excruciating awkwardness that had been the limousine ride, the pre-prom dinner with Taylor was actually kind of nice. They rarely spent much time together, despite everyone's assumptions that they were seriously dating, and Chad sometimes forgot that Taylor was actually pretty awesome. After she had told him a funny story about how her little sister had gotten herself lost in a Target last weekend, he grinned at her and said, "You know, I'm going to miss you."
She looked a little taken aback, but there was a smile on her face. "That's sweet, Chad. I'm going to miss you too. Even if you are hopelessly oblivious."
"I am?" Chad thought about it.
"Um, hello? I've been pointedly making your life hell since, like, sophomore year. And you only just caught on in the past few months."
Chad chuckled. "I'm not good at subtle."
"I'm anything but subtle."
"I'm not very good at overt, either."
The check came by and Chad shelled out the money. When they stood, Chad offered his arm to Taylor, which she graciously took.
"I guess not." Taylor did the little thing where she rolled her eyes, shook her head, and looked all affectionate and everything, all at the same time. "In any case, I guess it's for the better that you never did catch on. I had time to prepare myself for the possibility that we're not actually meant to be."
"Aw, come on, Tay. We were meant to be friends. Really good friends."
"Do you consider me to be one of your good friends?" She looked up at him, seeming both surprised and pleased by the thought.
"You're pretty much my favorite girl in the entire world," he replied. "Well, besides my mom. And my little sister. And my grandma, because my grandma's badass. But disregarding family, you're right up there. Look, there's the limo."
~*~
To: triplethreat14@ehs.edu
From: captainwildcat@ehs.edu
Subject: sup
hey chad
just wanted to tell u i'm here in stanford
it's beautiful here! i definitely wouldn't mind living here
gabriella is beautiful too :)
i'm sorry i'm missing prom :( but i bet u and taylor are having fun :)
probs more than gabi and me bc she has all this studying to do
see you bro
troy
p.s. tell kelsi & ryan that we're going to try our hardest to make it back in time for the musical 2mrw nite
if not we're SO SORRY bc we know theyve worked soooooo hard :(
~*~
It was nothing like any teen drama he'd ever watched on television (involuntarily, only because his sister had left the TV on, like, the romantic comedy channel and Chad had nothing better to do). He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Mostly, it was boring. He danced a few times with Taylor, a few times with Kelsi, and even once with Sharpay. Martha had decided to come after all, not with Jason but instead with her sophomore cousin. One of the guys from the academic decathlon team had found Taylor and apparently insisted on dancing with her all night long, which she clearly didn't mind, so neither did Chad. During some of the fast songs, they all gathered in a circle and danced wildly. Mostly, though, Chad sort of hung out on the sidelines. He was definitely being a lame wallflower, but he had come not expecting to have fun, and now he wasn't having fun. Surprise.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw that he had a text message from Ryan.
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
11:18PM
i saved that dance 4 u.
Oh, and there was that. In addition to how time wouldn't stop and let Chad hang onto high school for just that much longer, and how everything was changing, and how he hated it because it was terrifying--there was the equally terrifying problem that was Chad's feelings for Ryan. They had been building up all year long--it had started last summer at Lava Springs, and it had been gradual--but now scenes like the one just this past Thursday were a dime a dozen. Ryan was not 100% Wildcat. He hadn't been a staple of Chad's life for the past four years, at least not in the same capacity as Chad's other friends had been.
Ryan was different. Ryan was fascinating. Ryan was really attractive. Chad was ready to face the fact that he wasn't completely straight. All of these things, Chad found, resulted in a very different relationship than he had with the team or with anyone else in his life. They were always flirting, always touching. When Chad had a thought he wanted someone else to hear, sure, sometimes he told Troy, but more often than not Ryan was his first choice. When they watched movies together, Chad found himself doing that slightly obnoxious thing where every time he laughed, he wanted to make sure Ryan was laughing too.
Sometimes Ryan did the same thing at the same time, and their eyes would lock. Chad would turn away quickly, and if the room wasn't too dark, Chad could look out of the corner of his eye and see the shells of Ryan's ears turning red.
It was almost summer, and Chad was stuck in that strange pre-graduation vortex where everything was changing but nothing had changed yet. There was still time.
He took a deep breath and texted back.
Chad Danforth to Ryan Evans
5-16-2008
11:22PM
hey. do u want 2 blow this Popsicle stand (ha ha) and meet me outside by the fountain?
Ryan Evans to Chad Danforth
5-16-2008
11:24PM
give me 2 mins & i'll be there.
Chad found Taylor and the academic decathalon boy twirling to the sound of Rihanna. He nodded at the boy, who nodded back, and Chad tapped on Taylor's shoulder. "Hey, Taylor," he yelled over the beat of the music. "I'm going outside for a bit. Call me when you wanna go, okay?"
She gave him the thumbs up and winked before twirling back to her dance partner. It was Chad's turn to do the affectionate eye-rolling/head-shaking combo. He put his hands in his pockets and made his way outside, where people were talking without shouting now that they could hear each other.
Ryan was standing under a lamp post, as distantly as possible from the groups of boys and girls flirting with each other. He held his jacket with one finger, slung over one shoulder, and had his other hand in his pocket. He looked like he'd walked straight out of an old musical. Not that Chad had ever watched one. He grinned when he saw Chad approaching.
"Fancy seeing you here," he said, tipping his hat with the hand that had been in his pocket.
"I come often," Chad replied, shrugging. "Thought I'd drop by."
"Did you really want to dance with me?" asked Ryan. "I didn't think so, but your text--"
Chad shook his head. "I don't really want to dance. I just didn't want to be there anymore."
Ryan nodded, but if Chad didn't know better, Ryan looked a little disappointed. "I understand. Sucks about the Troy thing." He looked up at the sky and then back down, into Chad's eyes. "You really wanted this to be perfect, didn't you?"
Ryan was the only person Chad could admit that to without feeling like a complete lameass. "Yeah, I did. I don't know, it's supposed to be our night to remember, right? And all that. I don't know, I thought it was supposed to be more awesome thanm this."
"Well, what I think you need," Ryan pulled his jacket back on and angled his hat to the other side, "is to stop moping. I don't care whether you want to dance or not, it's going to happen. And it's going to be fun." He offered Chad his hand.
Chad hesitated. He glanced back at the other kids standing around. They could turn around and see them dancing like idiots at any moment. It totally wasn't what you were supposed to do at prom. Did he care?
Everything was changing.
Chad took Ryan's hand and rested his other on Ryan's shoulder. "What kind of dance are we going to do?" he asked.
"Does it matter? Just feel it." They weren't doing any special kind of dance. They were just swaying together. It felt nice.
"There's no music," Chad pointed out.
"That's true." Ryan was quiet for a moment, before he began to sing quietly into Chad's ear. It wasn't a song Chad recognized, but he could tell it was from a musical. "If I loved you/time and again I would try to say/all I wanted you to know." They were moving away from the lamp post so that its light wasn't shining down on them anymore.
Chad forgot about the other people standing outside, just nearby. He forgot about the people laughing and dancing and probably having the times of their lives inside the gym. "If I loved you/words wouldn't come in an easy way/round in circles I'd go." Chad pulled his head away just enough to see Ryan's face fully. His eyes were so big, and he looked straight into Chad's own as he sang, "Longing to tell you/but afraid and shy/I'd let my golden chances--"
Chad kissed him. Ryan's lips were warm, and they opened under Chad's mouth in surprise but not in protest. Chad pushed his fingers into the hair at the back of Ryan's head, and he could feel Ryan's arm pull him closer by the waist. Their other hands were still clasped together at their side. Ryan's tongue swept into Chad's mouth, licking at intimate places few people had ever been before. Chad sucked on it, and Ryan made a tiny sound that Chad loved, nibbling at Chad's bottom lip. It wasn't perfect, but it was pretty wonderful nonetheless, at least in Chad's opinion.
When they came up for air, they didn't say a word to each other. Chad wasn't sure what words could precisely do justice to how he felt. He settled for just grinning at Ryan instead. Ryan beamed back.
~*~
5-23-2008
FINAL REPORT CARD
Charles Robert Danforth
Grade 12
DOB 10/15/1990
ID# 15603
US Government - 3.8 (A)
British Literature - 2.9 (C+)
Trigonometry - 3.5 (B)
Chemistry - 3.0 (B-)
Spanish III - 3.0 (B-)
Drama - 4.0 (A+)
~*~
Gabriella Montez is in Stanford but she misses everyone! :)
last updated on May 16, 2008
Zeke Baylor is baking cookies for the post-graduation party tonight! they're Snickerdoodles, guys, get excited...
May 23, 2008 at 3:55pm
Sharpay Evans posted a picture.
Me and Boi in matching graduation gowns!!
May 23, 2008 at 3:52pm
Ryan Evans is now In a Relationship.
May 23, 2008 at 3:45pm
Ryan Evans commented on Chad Danforth's wall:
pretty sure you have no one to blame but yourself ;)
<3
May 23, 2008 at 3:36pm
Troy Bolton commented on Chad Danforth's wall:
duuuuuude, ANSWER YOUR PHONE. Call me asap.
May 23, 2008 at 3:33pm
Jason Cross is graduating high school tonight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 23, 2008 at 3:27pm
Kelsi Nielsen commented on Chad Danforth's wall:
IT WAS ABOUT TIME :o)
May 23, 2008 at 3:26pm
Chad Danforth is now In a Relationship.
May 23, 2008 at 3:19pm
Chad Danforth commented on Ryan Evans's wall:
i just got my report card..........pretty sure it's your fault i didn't get a b in english--i never had time to finish my essay ;)
May 23, 2008 at 3:15pm
~*~
Summer was amazing. That was the only way either Chad or Ryan could think to describe it. Neither of them had ever been in love before, at least not like this. Ryan was the happiest he'd been for a very long time. It was the happiest Chad had been in his life. But eventually, summer had to end. In August, Ryan left for school.
The afternoon before the morning Ryan's plane was scheduled to take off, they exchanged see you laters at Chad's house. They sat across from each other on Chad's bed with the stupid Batman sheets Ryan had come to love so dearly. Chad was picking at an invisible thread on his pillowcase and refused to look up at Ryan as Ryan lauded every inch of Juilliard's existence.
Finally, Ryan was fed up. "Don't look so sad, Chad," he chastised him, rolling his eyes. "It's not like you'll never see me again."
"It's a long time until December," Chad replied, though he looked sheepish. "I don't know, I guess I'm just worried you'll meet some ridiculously attractive ballet dancer and you'll be all, 'Who's Chad Danforth? I've never heard of him,' and a million years later I'll run into you in New York--"
"As you do--"
"Right, and I'll see you in Starbucks or something, and you'll be 'Oh, I recognize you! You were in one of my classes at Juilliard, right?' and I'll say--"
"'No, you're the jerk who left me behind in Albuquerque, I hate you, you bastard.' Right?" Ryan couldn't help laughing. "Your imagination is a pretty interesting place, Chad."
Chad looked at him then. They locked gazes, and Ryan stopped laughing. He suddenly felt breathless, as his boyfriend often tended to make him feel. They just sat there, staring at each other, Chad's sad brown eyes making Ryan want to kiss him until he never felt sad again. He reached for Chad's t-shirt and wrapped his fist in the fabric, pulling him closer so that he could press his own lips to Chad's.
Chad reacted quickly. They had exchanged so many kisses in the past few months, Ryan thought they might grow tired of it, but they never did. It was still too new to be too familiar, but not so new that Ryan didn't know that Chad would always tilt his head to the left first or that Chad would reach up to touch Ryan's hair at the nape of his neck, or that if they really got into it, somehow their teeth would always click together at least once because no matter how graceful Ryan was on stage or Chad was on the court, neither of them were perfect.
Without removing his mouth from Chad's, Ryan pushed him backward so that he was on top. His leg fell between Chad's knees, a movement to which Chad reacted with enthusiasm. Ryan tugged on one of Chad's curls, laughing into Chad's mouth. It was sweet and slow and lovely, but Ryan couldn't shake the feeling that it was also tinged with shades of sadness and desperation.
It might have been a few minutes or a few hours when Chad pulled away. Their t-shirts had disappeared, and Ryan had ended up on the bottom. He frowned up at Chad.
"I love you." Chad said it so quietly that Ryan wasn't sure how he'd heard it. It wasn't the first time he'd said it, but this time it sounded a lot heavier and more important than it had before.
"I'll miss you," Ryan replied after a long moment. "At least until December."
"Yeah." Chad leaned down and kissed Ryan's jaw. "December."
Part Two