Chapter 2: Another Side of Zeke

DISCLAIMER: The last time I've checked, F. Scott Fitzgerald still owns "The Great Gatsby" & Disney still owns "High School Musical".

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to cornique chaylor girl, as she was the first person to ever review on this story in nearly three months. Because of her review, I was inspired to continue with the story.

About every Friday, my neighbor Danforth would have his entire backyard decorated with tents, tables, and tons of lights scattered throughout the property. Trucks from businesses all over New York would come in loaded with meats, drinks, and desserts of the finest quality. Cooks would spend the entire day fixing the food for the next day. I could only imagine the amount of money Danforth is paying for things like this.

Every Saturday, Danforth would have parties that would begin sometime during the day and end by around 4:00 the next morning. From my understanding, very few people were actually invited to some of these parties. People from both harbors (mostly West Harbor) would come in droves and acted like wild children having fun. I would sometimes watch over from my porch and listen to the music and watching the people dance and enjoy life.

Between the two Harbors and New York was a small, desolate place filled with garbage that came from all over New York and even New Jersey. The smell from the landfill had a strong odor that would make a person pass out unless they lived in that area and were used to it. In that same area, there was a small gas station that was dilapidated and it looked like it could break apart at any minute. It was owned by a lowly, gas station attendant named Jason Cross. He lives there with his wife Sharpay Cross (née Evans).

I was riding with Zeke to New York to go find some agents for my acting career. Before we got to New York, we stopped at the gas station. At first, I thought it was for some gas. But I found out it was for something else. It was something Gabriella told me about the other day at Taylor's house.

"Come in, Troy. I want you to meet my girl." Zeke told me as he got out of his car.

"Uh, no thanks Zeke. I'll just stay in here." I insisted.

"No, you're getting out of this car right now." Zeke pulled me out of his car and dragged me into the broken gas store.

"JASON! Jason, where are you?" Zeke shouted out. Seconds later, Jason slowly comes out from his office. He looked like a down-on-his-luck kind of guy. He had long shaggy brown hair that barely covered his hazel eyes. He was about the same height as Zeke and I, but with a larger build. His face had dirt all over it, thanks in part to the dirt from the landfill and the cars he's been working on.

"Hi, Mr. Baylor. How are things with you?" Jason asked.

"Oh things are great, as usual." Zeke answered before he introduced me to him. "Jason, this is my friend Troy Bolton. He's the next big Broadway star."

I blushed over his comment. "Oh, that's okay, Zeke. You don't have to be so generous." Zeke waved his hand blowing off what I just said.

"But it's true, Troy. And you know it." Zeke said before Jason interrupted the two of us.

"I'm sorry, sirs. When are you going to sell me that car, Mr. Baylor? I really need it."

"I have my fine man working on it right now."

"He's an awfully slow worker. Don't you think?" Zeke seemed to have taken offense at his comment.

"Actually, Dwaine's not a slow worker. He's doing the best he can on that car. Not only that, he has four children to feed; all under age 10. If you keep up that attitude, I'll just take my business somewhere else."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Baylor. I didn't mean to hurt his feelings." Jason quickly apologized. "I just really need that car."

"You should be thankful that I'm even doing something like this for you."

I had no clue what Zeke & Jason were talking about, so I just stood by and watched. Soon, I hear footsteps coming down the stairs and into the waiting room. I turned around and saw a small-framed woman that was about 5'3" in height. She was my complexion with long blond hair that stopped at her mid- back and large brown eyes. She was wearing a pink dress that was worn out and very much faded in color. I saw the wedding band on her left ring finger and realized it was Jason's wife Sharpay. When she cleared her throat, she grabbed all of our attention.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Troy, this is Jason's wife Sharpay Evans Cross." Zeke introduced me to her as we shook hands.

"Jason, why don't you some chairs for them? They ARE our guests." Sharpay rudely said to him.

"Yes, honey." Jason said before he left the room to get the chairs. Sharpay watches Jason as his shadow disappears into the background. When the coast was clear, she breezes by me next to Zeke and pinched his butt. She brings her ear closer to his mouth.

"I want you on the next train to New York when you get the chance. Call me when you get there." I hear Zeke whisper into her ear.

"OK, baby." Sharpay says before she pinches him again and walks away. I wasn't very surprised that Zeke's mistress was a White woman. He's always been the 'big man on campus' with all the ladies, no matter what race she was. I was more surprised at him cheating on Taylor with a lower class woman. When Jason came back with two chairs for us, Zeke decides it was time to leave.

"Well, it looks like it's time for us to leave." He pulls on my arm signaling me to follow him to his car. "Jason, I'll get back with you as soon as I get more information on that car. Have a nice day, Mrs. Cross." It was the last thing he said before he left to go back to his car.

"It was very nice meeting both of you." I waved to them before I followed Zeke. Once we got into the car, Zeke turned on the key and we drove off headed to New York.

Along the ride to New York, the same thought kept running through my head. The fact that Zeke is having an affair just wouldn't go away. All I kept thinking was, 'Why would Zeke cheat on Taylor? Hell, why would ANY man cheat on a girl like Taylor McKessie? She's smart, comes from a very wealthy family, and of course, drop dead gorgeous. Any man would chop their limbs off just to date her. Hell, I'd date Taylor if we weren't cousins through marriage.' When we get to the bus stop to wait for Sharpay, I decided to ask him what I was thinking about.

"Zeke, why are you cheating on Taylor?" I asked Zeke. I really wanted to punch him in the face for cheating on my cousin, but I decided not to.

"Look, just because I'm a married now doesn't mean I can't have any fun. Besides, Taylor's not going anywhere. Just don't tell her about this." Zeke explained to me. Before I could say more, we heard a small knock on my window. We turned around and saw it was Sharpay who just came off the 12:30 train.

"ZEKE!" Sharpay exclaimed as she opened the door and got in. She jumped over me and gave Zeke a big, smothering kiss on the lips. After they separated, Zeke playfully slaps her butt before she sits down in between us.

"Baby, you remember my friend Troy Bolton?" Zeke tells her. She nods her head and waves hello to me before we drove off from the station.

A few minutes later, we arrive at a very fancy apartment complex on Fifth Avenue. It was one of the tallest apartment complexes in Manhattan. Zeke didn't own the building, but he owned the entire top floor of the building. It once had five separate apartments, but he tore the walls down to make one large condo for himself. All three of us got out of the car and Zeke gave the keys to the valet driver.

"Thanks for the ride to New York Zeke, but I really have to go. I'll leave you two alone." I said trying to walk off but Zeke stopped me before I could get the chance.

"Oh, no you don't, Troy. Sharpay would be awfully sad to see you leave."

"But what about my agent hunting?"

"Those same agents will be back in their offices tomorrow. Now, come on. We're gonna have a party in my place. Right, baby?" Zeke asked Sharpay before he lightly kisses her.

"That's right, Troy. I'll call up my brother Ryan. He's a singer. I'll tell him to bring some of his friends. If you're lucky, he might have an agent stop by."

"Damn, man." That was all I could say as I saw the place. Zeke definitely spared no expense here.

"Well, sometimes you got to enjoy the finer things in life. You only live once." Zeke said before he lightly kissed Sharpay's lips.

I couldn't believe what it had inside. It had a very spacious living room all colored in black and white. There was a small bar in the corner of the room that was fully stocked with all the most expensive liquor on the planet. His main kitchen looked very luxurious and it had a small island with two ovens and two counter tops on it. It was any aspiring chef's dream. Even though Zeke loved to cook from time to time, he always had a live-in chef to fix all his meals for him. His condo was beautiful, and he could tell that I liked it alot.

"Yeah, Troy. The ultimate bachelor pad- only if I wasn't married. Remember what I said about Taylor and her not knowing this." Once he told me that, guests started to come in, including Sharpay's brother Ryan.

"Twin bro, this is my friend Troy Bolton. He's new to town and he's an aspiring actor." She said to him. I stuck my hand out to him and firmly shook it.

"Hi, there. My name is Evans- Ryan Evans. I'm a singer." As he introduced himself to me, I noticed his features. He wasn't a very tall guy; he's about 5'7". Like his sister, he had blond hair and a small frame. But unlike Sharpay, he had blue eyes, in contrast to her brown eyes. He had on a pink colored buttoned shirt, tight blue jeans and shoes that matched his shirt. I could tell his favorite color was pink just like his sister.

"I know. Your sister Sharpay told me." I said to him. I thought he was gay until he introduced a short brunette girl with red glasses to me.

"This is my beautiful girlfriend Kelsi Nielsen. She's originally from Russia and she's a composer."

"Hi. I hear you live next door to a Mr. Danforth in West Harbor." Kelsi asked me.

"Yeah. So?"

"I went to a party there a few weeks ago. He has the best parties in all of West Harbor, and he always allows lower class people into them."

As the party went on, more and more guests came by and they partied like it was 1999 all over again. The music was blasting throughout the building; other tenants could hear it. They would complain about the noise, but they knew when Zeke Baylor is throwing a party they don't dare to complain as they would be evicted that split second. Sharpay and Zeke continued to ask people how the party was going for them and they would make out in front of everybody. As I watched the duo display their love, Ryan and Kelsi walked behind me and started speaking to me.

"Did you know neither Zeke nor Sharpay can stand their spouses?" Ryan said.

"Really?" I asked.

"Nope. I think they'd rather kill themselves than to stay married to their spouses." Kelsi said.

"If that's what it'll take for them to get out. It's actually his wife that's keeping my sister apart from him. Her dad's a politician. Years ago, he helped create a law banning interracial marriage in this country. That's why Zeke's still married to her and not to my sister."

I couldn't believe what he said. Everything they said was a lie and I knew it. I've been a part of Taylor's family since I could remember. One of her mom's nieces married one of my dad's nephews and they've been married for 15 years. They have 3 beautiful sons and they couldn't be any happier. I knew there was a bill about it , but it was killed in the House. Besides, the only way the McKessies were connected to the government was through her older brother Senator Grant McKessie (D-GA) and he's been in the Senate for just under two years.

"I'm sorry to tell you, but Taylor's dad isn't a politician. He's in software technology. Her brother is a Senator." I said to them.

"Oh." Both replied.

"And as for that law, there's no such thing. I know this because I'm her cousin." Both Ryan and Kelsi looked at me really weird.

"Your cousin?" Kelsi asked.

"Through marriage. If that law you mentioned was real, we wouldn't be related. They tried passing it as a law, but it failed."

"Oh, OK." Ryan said before he and Kelsi walked away from me.

As the party went on, I kept drinking and drinking. I was so drunk from all the liquor, I couldn't even walk straight. I'd never been this drunk in my entire life, not even back in college at the frat parties. I soon found a seat away from the crowd to try and regain my composure. 'I cannot be doing this if I'm going to become a serious actor' I thought. As I was sitting down, Sharpay spots me and comes by to sit next to me. In a drunken state, she starts to tell me how she met Zeke.

"Hi, Troy. I hope you're having fun."

"I am. Thanks for inviting me, Sharpay." I said to her.

"No problem. Do you wanna know how I met Zeke?" She asked.

"Go ahead. Tell me." Not that I actually cared, I let her explain anyway.

"Well, I met him in mid-January on a train to New York to see Ryan & Kelsi. I was sitting down looking out the window when I felt a big bump on my shoulder. I looked up to see who did that and that's when I saw the most perfect looking man of the male species."

"You mean Zeke?" I said, also slightly drunk but not as drunk as her.

"Mm-Hmm. While I was looking at him, my mind went completely blank. I couldn't think of anything else at that moment. All I could think about was how handsome he was. He had on a gray business suit and shiny black shoes. His hair was clean shaven, not rough looking like my lame-ass husband Jason. He was well put together; all around perfection. You could tell from afar that he came from a family with tons of money. I fell in love with him the first time I saw him. I was in such a daze over his beauty that I didn't even notice him leaving the train. When I spotted him, I ran off the train just before it pulled off trying to find him. I couldn't spot him anywhere; I could tell that he'd already left to wherever he had to go. As I stood at the train station waiting for the next train back home, all I kept thinking about was him. It made the three-hour wait for the next train well worth it." After she tells me her story, she begins to cry.

"Are you okay?" I asked her.

"Mm-Hmm." Sharpay nodded. "It was the happiest day of my life."

"SHARPAY, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?" Zeke yelled out as he stormed towards both of us. His loud footsteps quickly got our attention.

"Zeke, baby. What's up?" Sharpay drunkly said.

"Get your skinny ass up and get back to this party!" He said yanking her by the arm and into their bedroom. Some of the party people went over the door to hear what was going on. I, along with everyone else at the party, could hear Zeke and Sharpay arguing. Minutes later, Zeke opens the door and leaves the room as Sharpay says Taylor's name over and over again.

"Taylor! Taylor! Taylor! I can say her name anytime I want to!"

"Stop it, Sharpay. I've told you over and over again, NEVER MENTION MY WIFE'S NAME!" Zeke calmly says.

"I can say that bitch's name as much as I want! You're not my father! Taylor! Taylor! Tay-" A strong force of Zeke's large hand went across the small blond's face, busting her lower lip. Immediately, tears began to fall from her eyes. Quickly realizing what he had done, Zeke runs into her arms and apologizes.

"I'm sorry, Shar. I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to do that." Zeke repeated over and over again.

"Yes you did, Zeke. You're not sorry." a teary-eyed Sharpay whispers.

"I'll never hit you again. I promise." He whispers into her ear as he pulls her into a hug.

"OK, Zeke."

After that incident, the rest of the party began to die down with the crowd of people beginning to leave. It wasn't until after midnight that Zeke and I left the apartment. Sharpay stayed with her brother Ryan at another apartment just 25 minutes away via subway. 30 minutes later, he dropped me off at my house in West Harbor. As I walked inside, Zeke honked his car horn to grab my attention.

"Hey, I'll see you later this week. Good luck finding a place to start your business. If you need anything, don't be afraid to call or visit. Alright?"

"No problem, Zeke. Tell Taylor I said hi."

"Will do. Goodnight." Zeke said before he drove off my driveway.

Right before I walked in, I saw Danforth standing at the head of his dock again, jsut as I did when I first moved here. The more I look at this man, the more I become intrigued by him. It was something about him that made me want to learn more about him. Soon, I would know who this man really was and what he is all about. It was just a matter of time.

There goes Chapter Two. I hope you all enjoyed it. I know it's not as good as I'd like for it to be, but I wanted to put something out.

I am SOOO sorry about not updating this. I had lost my muse for this story & I've been busy with school. That's why I haven't updated this in a long time.

I was going to make the"Myrtle" character in the story be Gabriella (as I had originally planned), but I thought this would cause confusion to some people. So, I decided to make the "Myrtle" character Sharpay. As for Chad, he WILL be coming up soon.

If there is anything you would like to see on here, please let me know. Your reviews are a HUGE help for me.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!