Never Judge a Book by It's Cover

Summary: Oneshot. Ryan had a very interesting day at East High. What happened? Read to find out… Ryella.

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Hi there. I'm Ryan Evans, the probably lesser-known twin of Sharpay. I know I'm her twin but sometimes, I hardly feel like I know her. We may look alike but we are so different when it comes to our personalities.

"Ryan!" an annoying voice called out. I sighed inwardly. That's my twin sister, Sharpay. She's a very talented singer, dancer and actor. Unfortunately, that's some of the only positive qualities she has.

"Ryan, you're doing it all wrong! Sing that line again!" she ordered. I feel my anger rise again, but as I always do, I try to control it. I sing that cursed line again, my voice straining because I've been singing all afternoon. We were rehearsing our song for the Spring Musical for the lead role.

Sharpay and I now would double our effort now that we have some serious competition, Troy Bolton and Gabriella Montez. Yup, those two. The last pair you would expect to become East High's new singing sensation.

Troy Bolton, the basketball guy. I would never have thought that a player of such a dumb sport would be gifted with a sensational voice. I have to admit it, but I once thought of him as a typical jock. I never really passed off judgments without knowing them more, but something about him just makes me dislike him easily. Maybe I'm just jealous, I mean, he has everything, friends, family, a lot of talent, a gorgeous girlfriend…well, ex-girlfriend.

Speaking of ex-girlfriends, his is none other Gabriella Montez. I smiled dreamily. There's no other girl like her, smart, beautiful, has a breath-taking voice, but still this nice person who would like you, no matter how weird you may be. Yes, you heard me right, I like her…Troy is so lucky to have…had her. I can't believe that Troy would dump someone like her. Maybe he's just too blind not to see how wonderful she really is.

Oh, no. Sharpay's looking at me intently again. I better shake this off. I try to sing the intro of our song.

Ya never know what you're gonna feel, oh

Ya never see it comin' suddenly it's real

She frowned. "Listen, I'm tired of you messing up. Now you're going to rehearse this all night, while I go to the mall…" she said, rolling her eyes impatiently. "And if I see you doing anything but practicing, I'll swear, Ill…" she tried to think of something, but nothing came up. "Just do it!" she said before turning swiftly to leave.

I bit back a smart comeback crawling out of my mouth and just nodded reluctantly. I watched her pink sports car drive off before smiling and leaving. I used my own car, a red Ferrari and drove straight to East High. I know it's a weekend but I always go there to help out with the extra activities. While making my way to the hallways, I noticed a familiar brunette running and slipping, all her papers flying out.

"Hey Gabs, you okay?" I asked her, offering my hand to stand her up. She smiled sadly, and stood herself up.

"Umm…you still upset over Troy?" I asked, trying to mask the concern dripping in my voice.

"Sort of…why would you care?" she asked, her voice cracking. Oh jeez, I'm making her cry. Better say something before she does…

"Why would I care?" No, no, no! I shouldn't have said that…

"Because you're Sharpay's twin brother, and you're as annoying and stuck-up as she is!" her voice was rising, and so was her temper. What! That's how she feels about me…

"Look, I'm trying to be nice to you. Just because I'm Sharpay's twin brother, doesn't mean that I'm her clone!" I yelled at her for judging me before even knowing me. I regretted what I did immediately, because she bolted off the opposite direction, tears flowing from her eyes.

I groaned angrily, hating myself for what I did. I sounded like Sharpay, so mean and cold…

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I helped the drama club in their props the whole afternoon. I spent most of my time painting the huge 'school' that's going to be used in the spring musical, You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown.

"Thanks for the helping hand, Ry." The drama club members thanked me before leaving. I sighed and looked at my watch. '6:30 PM'. Sharpay would still be in the mall doing whatever girls usually do. I decided just to roam around the empty halls of East High. It was really quiet, but I overheard someone singing in the Music room.

I thought you were my fairytale
A dream when I'm not sleeping
A wish upon a star
That's coming true
But everybody else could tell
That I confused my feelings with the truth
When there was me and you

I overheard an angelic voice fill the air. I snuck my way to the door and pressed my ears to it. I recognized Gabriella's sad but soulful voice as she continued to sing.

Cause I liked the view
Thought you felt it too
When there was me and you

"Gabriella?" I called out. "Listen, about what happened earlier, I'm sorry okay? Please don't be mad…" She opened the door.

"Were you spying on me?" she asked incredulously, a look of suspicion shown in her face. "Uhh…no! I was just roaming around and I heard you singing and…yes." I stuttered, feeling the heat build up my cheeks.

For some reason, she smiled at me. It was a sad smile, but it radiated her beauty and…ugh, I'd better stop reading those cheesy novels Ms. Darbus asked me to read. "You're really an enigmatic person, Ryan." She said, a hint of amusement in her voice.

I cleared my throat to sound more dignified. "So," I asked, making my voice deeper, "What would a fair lady such as yourself be doing at this hellhole?" hoping for a positive reaction.

She giggled. Whew. "I just came here to think, you know, about the whole break-up thing." She said, choking on the last part. "I'm really sorry about what happened." I said modestly. She shrugged. "It's not your fault. Troy just wanted to be friends. And if that's what Troy wants…" Tears started to form in her eyes.

"Stop saying that. Troy doesn't deserve you. He's just finding some girl he could hang in his arm. He isn't even worth your time." I said comfortingly, handing her my handkerchief. She smiled lightly and accepted it, wiping the tears off her eyes. "Thanks for being so kind to me, Ry. But what's with the sudden change of heart?" she asked.

"I'm not as stuck-up as you thought I was." I said. "Never judge a book by its cover." He said, smirking to cheer her up a little.

"Right. Thanks again, Ry. You're really nothing like Sharpay." She said, smiling now. I suddenly feel warmth in my insides, like my stomach was doing back flips.

"Wow, that's quite a compliment." I smiled. "Come on, I'll take you home. It's getting late." I said, looking at my watch.

She smiled and followed me as I led her to my car. She sat at he passenger's seat and buckled the safety belt on. I smiled at her and started the ignition.

The whole trip was too much of awkward silence. I stopped by her house. "Your castle, m'lady." I said in my best imitation of a British accent. She giggled and got her bag.

"Thanks again, Ryan." Before I could respond, she quickly leaned in and kissed me in the cheek. My face grew hot as I blushed hard. I placed a hand in my cheek, feeling the warmth of her kiss. "Bye." I managed to stutter, my mind still not catching up with what just happened.

I drove quickly to my house and climbed to the window to our rehearsal room. I quickly grabbed the song sheet.

The door flew open. Sharpay, looking as high and mighty as usual, entered the room.

"Had fun?" she asked. I smiled and nodded.

"You had no idea."