Disclaimer: Don't own it.
Hey everyone...about this fic--I'm not totally sure where it came from. I was reading a lot of really well-written Chyan fics lately that were, shall we say, "less than happy" and since angst is my speciality (or at least it used to be) I decided to write a less fluffy Chyan fic. It was going to be a oneshot, but then I just kept getting more and more clear ideas in my head...and well...Sharpay jumped on the bandwagon too and I have 17 pages right now (though I haven't uploaded all of them) and now I'm not sure where this fic is totally headed anymore. It may even end up going into the school year if there's enough of a following, so we'll see.
My primary motivations for writing this fic were as follows: 1) To make a Chyan fic where the relationship isn't very accepted (in part or at all) by the characters that it normally is in these types of slash fics, but keep them all still in character, 2) To try my hand at writing femslash (Shaylor) which I haven't written since my Sailor Moon days of Haruka/Michiru, 3) To make a less happy Chyan fic unlike the majority of my Chyan fics have been up until late.
Oh, and for those waiting for an update on "What Would You Have Me Do?", I'm currently working with one other author (who can be sure she'll be credited in that chapter) to help me write the really-slashy last chapter. But that won't be up until the week after next, so you'll have to sit tight and wait, but I just wanted to let you all know that it hasn't been forgotten!
Unlikely
By: StillThereForMe
Neither one of East High's most unlikely and unsure couple thought they would ever get along with the Evans's twins. Even before Gabriella Montez transferred during junior year, both Taylor McKessie and Chad Danforth thought they'd sooner willingly rip all of their hair out before they'd have a civil and interesting conversation with either one of the Drama Duo. Ryan was clueless, spineless, and far too flamboyant for a boy, while Sharpay was selfish, conceited, and obliviously apathetic to anything in the world not related to her. And after the Winter Musicale fiasco, when Taylor and Chad were more open-minded about different people from different cliques, the line had already be drawn between "Troyella" and Evans supporters, so they still had no reason to get to know the infamous twins. Even less than they had in common with each other, "Chaylor" had nothing to do with Ryan or Sharpay.
Until Troy got them all summer jobs at Lava Springs, that is.
While they were both disgusted at the thought of having to serve or just work for their mortal enemies from the Winter Musicale auditions, both Taylor and Chad sucked it up because Troy and Gabriella both seemed to be on Cloud Nine at the thought of working together and Taylor and Chad were good friends who supported the star couple's happiness. They even pretended to be a couple too, because they knew that would be just perfect after their best friends got together. They said what couples would say to each other, went out on double dates, and even kissed each other once and a while (despite how much either one of them secretly hated it, it's what couples do), in hopes that the magic spark that seemed to flame to life whenever Troy and Gabriella were in the same room, would appear between them. There was no reason it shouldn't. They got along, they were good friends, they were the opposite sex, they were from similar backgrounds, and their best friends had found love between each other. It all made practical sense to Taylor, and common sense to Chad. So they went on through the day waiting for it to happen while playing boyfriend-girlfriend.
And it was all going just peachy until Troy had to screw it up.
When the Golden Wildcat couple's relationship started to hit dangerous waters and Gabriella started spending more time with Taylor in the kitchen than with her Redhawk-aspiring boyfriend, Chad and Taylor were forced to realize they didn't miss not being around only each other as lonely Gabriella moped taking boy advice from Taylor.
In the meantime, Chad started spending time with the guys and getting pissed off at his best friend constantly ditching him for the college guys and Sharpay. Taylor killed time trying to drown herself in work and add in some extra time to spy on the imperfect Sharpay-Troy potential couple. They were both worried inside to a certain degree, that if Troy and Gabriella couldn't keep a happy relationship, what did that mean for the two of them? When Taylor and Chad didn't even have the magic spark between them and no Troy and Gabriella to justify their relationship or to imitate couple-like things, they might be forced to realize that they weren't good together—and if they didn't belong with each other, neither one had any idea who they would belong with.
So instead of worrying about what they'd have to do if Troy and Gabriella split up, Taylor focused on trying to save the beloved Troyella couple. Constantly spying on Sharpay (to keep an eye on what the girl was scheming of course) and warning her best friend of whenever Troy and the blonde Diva seemed to be getting a little too close. Taylor tried to convince the dark haired girl to get back in the game, and demand more time with East High's Goldenboy, but only ended up to her horror convincing Gabriella to break up with him. But even then, Taylor found herself unable to stop spying on the pink-glitter wearing girl in anger. Even if it meant Sharpay started noticing her around and treating her like a servant, asking her to do ridiculous things like get her another towel, or bring her a lemonade, even though it wasn't technically the dark-skinned girl's job to do so.
Everything about the Lava Springs Princess annoyed the proud science geek to death—worse than even the ridiculous cheerleaders! At least the cheerleaders didn't have brains to begin with, they couldn't help being idiots. But Sharpay could scheme, she could plot, she wasn't a fool she had a mind and knew how to use it. She just chose not to at times! And still Taylor couldn't help but lead her group around to near wherever Sharpay happened to be lounging around in those skimpy-but-not-really glittery swimsuits (getting a tan which was really still a sunburn which could end up giving her skin cancer later in life) that day. The brainiac began to wonder if she had a masochistic impulse and just liked getting infuriated at whatever the conceited blond had decided to do that day, especially if it involved her and Troy. But then she'd brush that thought away and convince herself it was all for the good of her best friend's relationship. She was spying for Gabriella and Troy—even after the two broke up and it technically wasn't her business anymore.
Chad couldn't stand to be around the failing couple, or anyone involved in them, and so filled his free time by spending time with his teammates. Unfortunately, Zeke loved learning to bake and spent an awful lot of extra time taking extra lessons with the Lava Springs chef. Jason began hanging out with Martha and Kelsi, trying to become more of a "ladies man", which was last on Chad's list of things he wanted to do. The rest of the staff whose name's he knew, all their conversations seemed to be fixed on Troy, Gabriella, and Sharpay. Which lead to Chad spending his time with one of the last people on the planet he'd thought he'd be spending his summer with—Ryan. After "sparking" something at that staff baseball game, Chad suddenly found that the male twin wasn't as clueless or different from him as he'd previously thought. Who'd of thought the Drama King could throw such a good pitch after all? And his friends seemed to tolerate the flamboyant blond as well, so Chad had no reason not to personally accept the truth himself that he was greatly enjoying the free time he spent with Ryan more than most of what he'd done so far that summer. Whether it was just playing catch, playing a small game with some of the free staff members, those ridiculous rehearsals for the Talent Show, or extra dance lessons that Ryan scheduled for him because Chad had no confidence in himself despite how well he was doing.
But most significant to the dark skinned boy was those times Ryan requested Chad as his personal caddy at very certain hours because he knew Chad didn't want to have to be on-call as a waiter to serve Sharpay or Troy and Ryan did have that kind of power as an Evans. The two boys would be out on the golf course by themselves late in the evening, losing golf balls and laughing about teachers they'd both liked or disliked during the year, silly things that had happened in the kitchen or weird members of Lava Springs that gave the strangest requests for their meals or had the oddest habits. Sometimes though, they wouldn't even attempt to play golf. Chad would just vent about how much of an ass Troy was being, and Ryan would just sit next to him in the golf cart in the middle of the course and silently nod in understanding. It scared Chad somewhat when Ryan fell asleep one night leaning against his shoulder and it didn't weird the jock out at all. He actually didn't mind, and accidentally let that slip when Ryan woke up and kept continuously apologizing about doing so. When Ryan looked surprised, and then smirked suggestively at him, Chad knew he had to talk to Taylor. But he kept going out at times alone with Ryan—even after Troy and Gabriella got back together and Troy was his best friend again.
Chad was the one who found Taylor on her break, watching Sharpay lounging at the pool several days after the staff pool party, with no excuse for spying since the Troyella couple was reigning supreme again. But when he told her they had to talk and they went to a deserted room inside, Taylor was the one who quickly proposed they break up.
One thing Taylor and Chad had always had going for them was the ability to know what the other was feeling most of the time without them having to say it. Like the unspoken agreement the two had in the beginning of the summer about their determination to protect their best friends against the devious Evans twins plans, they both knew that the other had fallen for one half of that Drama Duo. They didn't need to say it, and to anyone who may have been spying on their break-up, that's all they'd know about it—it was a mutual breakup, no reasons were given because each of them already knew.
And when Ryan requested Chad to be his personal caddy that evening, the first thing Chad said once they were in the middle of the course in the tiny golf cart was that he wasn't dating Taylor anymore, and Ryan needed no more encouragement than that to lean over and hungrily press his lips against the darker boy's. And conscience-free, Chad opened in his mouth in a welcome response, pulling the lighter body onto his lap, pushing their hips together and enjoying the best make-out session he'd had in his life. It felt so much more right waging war with the other boy's tongue and running his hands up and down the paler one's sides, feeling the expensive material beneath his palms, and the warm heat of the skin under that which Chad wanted so badly to see. And he enjoyed Ryan's slim fingers running through his hair and running up under his stupid golf caddy shirt so much more than he had ever felt about Taylor's.
After the moment of passion had died down, and the two boys lied there panting and reveling in the simple pleasure of just being with each other, in that silly tiny golf cart, as cool breezes and the chirping of crickets unseen in the darkness of the evening came through the windowless vehicle.
"I'm glad," was all Ryan whispered softly into Chad's ear, that made the jock more sure than ever he had made the right decision.
And through some sort of twin telepathy, or some little bird in an unusual hat, or perhaps just through her own amazing senses, Taylor didn't even need to inform the blonde Diva the next day of the breakup. She just knew. That very morning shortly after their split, in the few moments following Taylor checking in, Sharpay showed up out of nowhere demanding that the darker girl come with her. When Taylor asked why, she got probably the last answer she'd expect.
"You've been working really hard lately, so I decided to give you a reward." The Drama Queen informed her in the most matter-of-fact fashion that almost made Taylor feel stupid…almost.
The "reward" brought the two girls to the Lava Springs spa, where immediately Taylor protested she wasn't allowed to go, before the blonde told her that she'd already been excused of her duties as Activities Director for the day by Mr. Fulton thanks to Sharpay. Strutting through the building into a private room, Sharpay instructed Taylor to lay down, face down, on the massage table.
"You bought me a massage session?" Taylor commented quickly in disbelief.
"That is why the table is there, Taylor." Sharpay teased. "Now lie down."
"No, I can't accept this," the straight-A student declared.
"What?" Sharpay quipped.
"It's way too expensive. I mean, thanks and everything, but there's no way I can pay you back for a whole massage…" Taylor shook her head defiantly.
"I'm not asking you to 'pay me back', just to get on the table!" The Drama Queen demanded with an expressive gesture towards the massage table.
After a few more moments of arguing, Sharpay finally let out a frustrated sigh and pulled the darker girl over and much to Taylor's surprise, kissed the girl right on the lips. The normally extremely intelligent girl was rendered speechless, mind blank, and frozen in place with her eyes wide. Sharpay smirked at the reaction and pulled away, placing a hand on her own hip.
"I was trying to be romantic, McKessie." The blonde informed in a faux-annoyed voice.
"But…but, I mean Troy…and then Zeke…and…" Taylor embarrassingly stuttered nervously, and was cut off by a pale finger with a pink manicured nail touching her lips.
"You and Chad broke up, right?" Taylor simply nodded dumbly, to which Sharpay smiled (somewhat evilly since it was near-impossible for her to look any different when smiling) and removed her finger from the girl's lips, to gently run her hand down the darker girl's arm. "Then would you change your mind about lying down if I said I was the one giving the massage?"
"You?" Taylor nearly shrieked in shock.
"I am a woman of many talents you know." Sharpay proudly stated, bringing her other hand to her chest in pride.
Grabbing a hold on her mind at Sharpay's conceited comment, Taylor calmed herself down a bit and remarked back with a grin "care to prove it, Miss Evans?"
Smiling widely, Sharpay simply answered "Of course."
And as the pale hands kneaded at the muscles on her back, occasionally accompanied with strawberry lipstick-laced kisses on her neck, Taylor's many doubts flew far away from her mind. She couldn't ever recall being this happy before, and especially not around East High's resident Drama Queen. She didn't wonder about the blonde's feelings about her, she didn't worry about her own, she just felt…relaxed. And wanted. And happy. She hadn't realized until that moment how much she wanted this from the other girl. Taylor had never felt this content around Chad.
"Enjoying yourself?" Sharpay whispered to the other girl.
"Absolutely…you're amazing Sharpay." Taylor honestly replied in a tired tone.
"I know." The Drama Queen chirped happily, stepping away as the brainiac sat up on the table.
"…could you teach me how to do that?" Taylor nervously looked up and was happily surprised to see a stunned look on the blonde's face.
But the look lasted only a second, before it turned into a suggestive smirk. "Fabulous!"
Next part is where the angst starts to come in! Should be up later today (which going by what time it is where I am, would be tomorrow actually since it's almost midnight), because it's already mostly written up.
Again, please review on what you honestly think!
(And I noticed after I wrote this that the Shaylor scenes seem to have a lot more dialogue than the Chyan ones...but when I was writing it, I for some reason just couldn't summarize Taylor and Sharpay. Maybe girls just need to talk more? XD God that's such a stereotype...but considering it's Sharpay, she's pretty hard to summarize, and she's just so fun to write talking... Anyway, what I'm asking is if it seemed weird or made the chapter seem lopsided? Or did no one notice until I pointed it out? From here on out there's going to be a lot more dialogue anyway...)
Please review! And this also includes about the summary and title and chapter titles...I'm open to heavy critiques on this fic. I'm just in that sort of mood and posistion with this fic, and am encouraging it. (Also, any typos mentioned will be quickly fixed! So don't fear mentioning those either).