Second Date: Bowled Over -- by kelbebop and phoebenpiper

Chad checked the clock on the kitchen wall yet again. It felt like he'd been at work for five hundred hours so far, and he still had ten more minutes to go before he was free.

And then he'd be off on his second date with Ryan!

The blond boy had insisted that, since their first date had been in "Evans Territory", it was only fair that their second date be firmly in "Chad Land" -- Ryan could be such a dork sometimes!

But nevertheless, Chad was glad that they'd be doing something HE knew this time around. Although he'd enjoyed their night of fondue and theatre, he'd felt slightly uncomfortable all evening. Of course, that had had NOTHING to do with the fact that Ryan had looked incredibly sexy in his pinstriped suit!

Tonight, however, was going to be more casual -- a simple trip to the bowling alley. Chad couldn't believe that Ryan had NEVER been bowling, not even as a kid! Chad was looking forward to teaching Ryan to bowl -- showing him the proper way to hold a bowling ball, standing behind him to help with his form, guiding him into his approach...

Chad had never thought of bowling as sexy before, but suddenly the images of bowling with Ryan were making him flush. He turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on his face.

As he dried off on a nearby dishtowel, something Fulton surely would've frowned at, Chad heard his own name.

"Hey, Chad," Troy called out, entering the kitchen. "Whatcha doin' tonight, dude?"

Chad smiled as his best friend approached. He still hadn't told Troy about him and Ryan, so he answered vaguely, "Nothin' much -- just...goin' bowling."

Troy's face lit up. "That's a great idea! We haven't been bowling in ages!"

Before Chad realized what was happening, Troy called across the kitchen, "Zeke, Jason -- bowling tonight?"

"No...wait...dude," Chad stammered ineffectually as Jason explained that he had other plans but Zeke cheerfully agreed to go.

"I'll go find the girls," Troy said, disappearing before Chad could stop him.

'Shit!' Chad desperately wanted to go find Ryan to warn him that their date had been commandeered by Wildcats, but he still had a few minutes left of his shift, and, knowing his luck, Fulton was bound to walk in if he left early. So Chad stood at the kitchen doorway, anxiously tapping his foot as he scanned the hallway for his date.

But when he caught sight of Ryan, all thoughts of Troy's hijacking flew out of Chad's mind as he stared open-mouthed at his date. The blond boy was wearing shiny new blue leather bowling shoes, a bright blue bowling shirt with giant sequined bowling pins on it, and a strange rounded black hat.

"What the hell?" Chad finally asked when he was able to remove his jaw from the floor. "What are you wearing?!"

Ryan beamed proudly. "Don't you love my new bowling ensemble?" Gesturing to each in turn, he exclaimed, "Bowling shoes, bowling shirt, and...a bowler!" Ryan grinned goofily. "What do you think?

Chad just shook his head. "I don't think bowlers WEAR hats."

Ryan laughed. "No, don't you get it? It's a...never mind," he finished, shaking his head.

"Whoa there, Ryan," Troy said, smiling as he walked up to the two boys. "I guess I don't have to ask if YOU'RE going with us," he teased.

Ryan looked blankly from Troy to Chad. "Us?"

Before Chad could explain, Gabriella came bounding up behind Troy. "Oh Ryan, you're going, too! I'm so glad." She turned to Troy, adding, "And that solves the car problem because Ryan can take HIS car."

"Yeah, that works great," Troy said, turning to Ryan. "You can take Chad and Taylor, and Gabi and Zeke can ride with me. That'll be perfect."

Zeke emerged from the kitchen, a smudge of flour still on his cheek. "We ready?" he asked the group before nodding at Ryan. "Cool shirt!"

"So I guess we'll just see you guys there," Gabi said as the three of them walked off. "Bye."

And then they were gone, leaving Ryan and Chad staring blankly after them.

Finally Ryan turned towards Chad. "What happened to our--?"

"Hey, guys," Taylor said, walking up. "So I guess I'm getting a ride with you?"

Chad mouthed the words, "I'm sorry," to Ryan, hoping his date wouldn't make a scene in front of Taylor.

Even though he had every RIGHT to make one!

But Ryan merely shrugged. "Guess so. My car's out this way."

Chad quietly followed Ryan and Taylor -- his date and his ex-girlfriend -- out to the parking lot. It was not exactly the most auspicious start to a second date.

-----

"What size?"

"Huh?" Ryan blinked in confusion at the heavily-tattooed man working the register.

The man sighed wearily. "Your shoes, Fancy-pants. What size do you need?"

"Oh! I don't need any. I brought my own." Ryan stretched his leg up as if at a barre, lifting his foot to proudly display his shiny new electric-blue leather bowling shoes.

"Didja wear those outside?"

Ryan blinked. "Yeah. Duh. I wasn't barefoot."

The man scoffed. "Then you need to rent shoes."

"But I just bought these. They're brand-new!" Ryan protested. "See, there's hardly any wear on the soles at all."

"I don't care HOW new they are, or even if magic elves made them." The man's voice practically dripped with contempt. "If you wore 'em outside, you ain't stepping on the lanes in 'em."

"Gimme a break! I'm not going to ruin your precious floor."

"Hey, those're the rules. If you don't like it, you can leave."

Leave?! He was a paying customer! Didn't this jerk know that the customer was ALWAYS right?!

Ryan pushed his hat more firmly onto his head as he leaned over the counter to give this...this...tattooed ape a piece of his mind. But as he opened his mouth to speak, he felt a hand on his back.

"Hey, it's okay, dude," he heard Chad say soothingly, gently rubbing Ryan's back. "You wear what, like, a 9?"

"8 ½," Ryan grumbled, taking a step back from the counter.

"Dude," Chad called out, "get my man here an 8 ½, please?"

"Sorry," the man smirked, a little too pleased with himself. "We don't have half-sizes."

Ryan narrowed his eyes at the man, ready to let fly a zinger he'd been saving for just such an occasion (courtesy of a book of Shakespearean insults that Sharpay had given him on their last birthday), but Chad quickly stepped in again.

"Then a size 9," Chad said, smiling as he added a very sincere-sounding, "please?"

The man scowled but grudgingly handed over a pair of very old-looking rental shoes.

"Thank you," Chad said pleasantly, taking the shoes and wrapping his arm around Ryan's shoulder to lead him away from the counter.

"Dude," Chad laughed as soon as they were out of earshot. "That was awesome! Now I know why your mom calls you 'Ducky'."

Ryan frowned at Chad before warily asking, "Why?"

Chad practically giggled. "Because, dude, you were totally about to go all Donald Duck on that guy. You even cocked your hat and pushed it down on your head like he does before he goes ballistic! Did you even KNOW that you do that?!" Chad squeezed Ryan's shoulder. "That was, like, the funniest thing I've seen all day."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "I'm glad to be so entertaining," he intoned sarcastically.

"C'mon, dude, it's FUNNY," Chad said, leading him back towards the lanes, still laughing.

Ryan started to fume, his anger finding a new target in Chad.

Chad must've felt Ryan tensing again for he added, "It's okay, dude -- just chill. We're here to have fun, remember?"

He squeezed Ryan's shoulder again, and this time the friendly touch had a calming effect on Ryan, who took a few deep breaths, feeling his anger slowly fade away. But as rational thought returned, he wondered aloud, "So what made you step in?"

"Hey, what kind of guy would I be if I let my date get into a rumble without an assist?" He winked. "I got your back, homie."

-----

"So you've NEVER been bowling before?!" Troy asked incredulously as he tied his shoe.

Ryan shook his head, staring doubtfully down at the floor where the gross rented shoes were sitting next to his brand new ones.

"That's, like, criminal," Troy continued. "Bowling's a blast! I'm really surprised your family hasn't been before."

"No, dude," Chad said, "it makes perfect sense."

Troy stared blankly at his best friend. "Why do you say that?"

"Because can you seriously imagine Sharpay risking her manicure for a sport like bowling?"

"I can," Taylor said, adding with a smile, "but ONLY if she had her own custom bowling ball."

Chad laughed. "Okay, I can see that. A custom ball with matching bowling shoes."

"Bright pink!" Gabriella added.

"With 'SE' monogrammed on them," Zeke chimed in.

Troy shook his head, laughing -- the idea of the Drama Queen with pink bowling shoes and a sparkly pink version of Ryan's sequined bowling shirt was pretty hilarious.

But since when did Chad start calling the Ice Princess by her actual name?

"Why are mine the only ones that say 'Rental'?" Ryan asked no one in particular.

Troy turned to the blond. "Huh?"

"My shoes," Ryan said, tentatively holding up a rental shoe by one lace as if any more contact might lead to infection. "Why are mine the only ones that say 'Rental'?"

Troy glanced down at his own rented bowling shoes. "Mine say 'Property of Cactus Lanes'," he said helpfully.

"In black marker!" Ryan whined. "You can barely see it! Mine's actually pre-printed in the leather. Look!"

And he was right! Troy was amazed -- he'd never seen shoes embossed with the word "RENTAL" before, especially in giant white lettering.

"Dude," Troy exclaimed, "I bet they can read those from across the bowling alley."

Ryan glared up at him.

Chad, however, simply laughed.

"I think Tattoo Guy must've picked that pair for you special, Evans," he teased. "You wanna go get another pair? Or maybe we should resume the rumble -- what do you think, Ducky? I'm sure Troy and Zeke would back us up."

Troy stared blankly at his best friend. "'Ducky?'"

Since when did Chad call Ryan "Ducky"?

And since when did Chad and Ryan get into rumbles?

Ryan merely let out a melodramatic sigh. "No," he pouted. "That's okay. I'll just wear these," he said, starting to put one on.

Gabriella patted Ryan on the back. "Don't worry about it, Ryan. You're among friends here."

She smiled warmly at Ryan, putting her head on his shoulder, and Troy felt an instant flash of jealousy.

"And I promise you," Gabi continued, "the fashion police don't spend a lot of time in bowling alleys."

"Yeah, we promise we won't tell your sister you wore rented shoes," Taylor said. "Right, guys?"

Troy just assumed it was a rhetorical question, but when no one responded to it, Taylor turned and glared meaningfully at the other boys. "RIGHT?!"

"Oh right!" "Of course!" "Absolutely!"

"See, Ryan?" Gabriella said cheerfully. "No worries!"

"Except for the fact that they're WAY too big," Ryan said, pushing his thumb down on the leather to demonstrate the space between his toes and the end of the shoe.

"Then take 'em off, dude, and let's go get you an eight instead."

Chad was certainly being helpful tonight. But Troy remembered his best friend's odd statement earlier about the rumble and decided to volunteer instead.

"I'll go get you a new pair," Troy said, grabbing Ryan's discarded rental shoes. "You guys need to help Ryan choose his ball."

As Troy walked back to the cashier, he could still hear the other three boys sniggering as Taylor sighed, "Boys!"

-----

"Okay," Troy said, clapping his hands together eagerly, "So, we need to pick teams," he declared.

Taylor shook her head -- leave it to the boys to turn an evening of casual fun into a competition.

"Teams?" Ryan asked, a puzzled expression on his face. "How do teams work in bowling?"

Chad shrugged. "Each person bowls, and the points are totaled together. It's just more fun that way because you get to root for your teammates." He glanced back and forth between his friends before a devilish grin curled his lips. "How about boys against girls?"

Troy and Zeke whooped their approval, giving each other high fives.

Taylor rolled her eyes. "SOMEONE needs to go back to remedial math -- there are four boys and only two girls."

"So?" Chad asked.

"So the teams are uneven if we play boys against girls," Gabriella explained. "And YOU GUYS have the advantage. It's not fair."

Troy shrugged. "So you girls get to pick one of us to make the teams even." Bowing to Gabriella, he offered gallantly, "I would be happy to offer my services."

"Way to ditch us, dude!" Chad exclaimed. "Whatever happened to bros before..." Taylor glared at Chad, who sheepishly finished, "...pretty girls. Bros before pretty girls!" He flashed Taylor an innocent smile.

Still glaring at Chad, Taylor announced, "We'll take Ryan."

Taylor noticed that Chad's smug smile instantly disappeared. "Fine," he scoffed. "You can have him. He probably sucks, anyway!"

"Oh, REAL nice!" Taylor chided as she swatted Chad on the back of the head.

"Anyway, what do YOU know?" Gabriella pointed out, linking her arm in Ryan's. "YOU thought he would suck at baseball, too!"

"No," Ryan said, shaking his head, "I probably DO suck."

A loud rumble sounded in the next lane, and the entire gang turned to see all the pins fall from a perfectly executed strike.

Ryan shook his head. "I'll never be able to do THAT."

"It's okay, Ryan," Taylor said, taking Ryan's other arm, "We'll help you out." Then, turning back to glare at the other boys, she added, "And together we'll kick their butts."

"You can TRY," Chad rebutted lamely.

"So what's our team name?" Ryan asked.

The two girls flanking him shrugged.

"We don't really NEED a team name," Gabriella explained.

"We'll be the Wildcats," Zeke chimed in.

Taylor laughed. "Oh yeah, THAT'S original."

Chad grinned at her. "You're just jealous 'cuz we called it first."

Taylor rolled her eyes. "Since we're a BOWLING team, I think we should have a bowling name, maybe something with 'strike' in it."

"Strike Zone, maybe?" Ryan asked hesitantly.

"That's a baseball term," Chad criticized.

"So?!" Taylor shot back, annoyed that Chad was behaving like such a brat tonight. "I think it's a perfect name."

Gabriella nodded. "Then Strike Zone it is...or...we are...or...whatever," she giggled.

-----

"Dude, where'd you learn to spell?"

Upon hearing his team captain's criticism, Zeke glanced up at the monitor above his head, where "GBRELL" was now flashing.

"Oh," Zeke said, searching the console in front of him for a backspace key. "I don't think some of these keys work right 'cuz I know how to spell Gab's name."

"Whatever, dude -- just move," Troy said impatiently, his hands already on the console.

Zeke stood up, re-sitting in one of the side chairs as the rest of his friends gathered around the center console, now criticizing Troy's typing.

Ryan, however, remained seated, so Zeke scooted over next to him.

"Having fun yet?" Zeke asked cheerfully.

Ryan shrugged. "I'm nervous I'll suck."

Zeke laughed. "It's bowling. Who cares? We're just here to have fun."

Ryan nodded, obviously not convinced.

"So," Zeke began, "You and your sister have never been bowling?"

Ryan shook his head. "Never."

Zeke filed this information neatly away into the "Sharpay" folder in his brain. The folder was getting quite large now, especially after spending the entire summer at her parents' country club. He knew someday he'd have enough information to plan the PERFECT date for Sharpay.

But not yet.

"Do you think she'd like bowling?" Zeke asked.

Ryan smiled knowingly. "It depends."

"On what?" Zeke had never really had the chance to talk to Ryan by himself before, and this info was GOLD.

"On whether she's any good at it or not," Ryan explained. "Sharpay LOVES activities that she's good at and HATES ones she's not."

Zeke grinned. "So what are some activities Sharpay is--"

"RIN, you're up."

Zeke and Ryan both looked up at Chad, who was grinning goofily in front of them.

"What?" Ryan asked.

Chad pointed to the console, where "RYN" was now flashing. "See? You're 'Ryn' for the night."

Zeke looked at Ryan, shrugging guiltily. "Sorry 'bout that-- the keyboard was acting weird."

"Yet YOUR name is somehow spelled right," Troy pointed out.

As Ryan stood up, Zeke couldn't help but smile to himself, knowing he'd have all evening to collect more Sharpay info.

-----

Ryan hefted the bowling ball awkwardly, looking back at his teammates. "Middle and ring finger, right?" he asked Gabriella.

Gabriella nodded. "You got it. Now the thumb."

Ryan did as he was instructed, but the ball still felt awkward in his hand. "I think the holes are too small. I can't even get my thumb in there."

Ryan heard snorting laughter and glanced over toward the boys, who were barely concealing their mirth behind innocent smiles.

"Hey Evans, maybe you need to give up on the kiddie balls and give one of the big boys a try?" Chad teased.

Shaking his head and grinning at Chad, Ryan walked back to where his teammates were seated. "See?"

Taylor shot a glare at the snickering Wildcat boys as she stepped up to examine Ryan's bowling ball. "I hate to tell you this, but I think Chad's right. Gabi, see if you can find Ryan a different ball. Maybe a ten-pounder?"

"I'm on it!" Gabriella bounced up from her seat to search the shelves of house balls.

"Ten pounds -- is that very heavy for a bowling ball?" Ryan asked Taylor -- it sure SOUNDED heavy.

Taylor shrugged. "Not really. But it's not the lightest, either. I think it'll be good to start you with something middle-of-the-road, since it's your first time bowling and all."

Ryan nodded, though he didn't really understand what the weight of the ball had to do with anything.

Gabriella returned, holding aloft a spectacularly glittery blue bowling ball. "It's perfect for you, Ryan! It matches your outfit!" She carefully passed the ball to Ryan, who grunted a little at the unexpected weight of it.

Ryan gripped the bowling ball, testing the holes, and was pleased to discover that his fingers seemed to fit perfectly. "Thanks, Gabs," he grinned at his friend.

"No problem," Gabriella replied. "Now go get 'em!"

"Yeah, those pins don't stand a chance," Taylor encouraged, patting Ryan on the back.

Ryan grinned and nodded at his teammates before turning back to the lane. The ten shiny-white pins seemed to mock him with their orderly arrangement. But all he had to do was hit one in just the right spot and the rest would fall. Easy, right? No problem!

Ryan took a deep breath and began his approach, swinging his arm back as he stepped toward the line. He released the ball smoothly, sliding a bit on the floor as he did. Crouching at the line, he watched the ball spin down the lane diagonally, rolling into the gutter mere inches before it reached the pins.

Behind him, Ryan heard sympathetic groans from his teammates. He sighed defeatedly.

"It's okay, Ryan," Gabriella quickly encouraged. "You get one more try!"

Ryan instantly perked up at her words. "I do?" he asked, turning back to look at her.

She laughed cheerfully. "Yep. Everyone gets two tries each turn."

"Awesome!" Ryan enthused, bounding over to retrieve his ball from the return. Once the bowling ball was back in his hands, he immediately stepped off for his second try.

"Oh, Ryan, wait!" Taylor called out, "You have to wait until the pins reset."

Ryan stopped abruptly, turning back to the girls. "But...I didn't knock any over. There's nothing to reset."

Taylor continued authoritatively, "But the wooden bar comes down anyway, whether you've hit anything or not." Taylor pointed to the far end of the lane, where a mechanical bar was sweeping under the lifted pins. "And if you HAD hit any pins and you bowled again before they reset, the computer scoring system wouldn't give you credit for any additional pins you hit on your second go."

Ryan chuckled. "I don't think I have to worry about that."

"Still," Taylor encouraged, "better to get in the habit now, right?"

Ryan shrugged. "I suppose. Can I bowl again now?"

Gabriella smiled brightly as she led Taylor back to her seat. "Go ahead, Ryan."

Ryan grinned, tipping his hat to the girls before turning back to face the pins. He stepped off gracefully, mimicking the experienced bowlers he'd been watching in the surrounding lanes since they arrived. His follow-through was flawless and smooth, and the ball release was beautifully executed.

But yet again, the ball rolled diagonally across the lane and into the gutter just before it reached the pins.

Ryan exhaled a frustrated sigh as he sank down into his seat. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought.

"You'll get it eventually," Gabriella offered. "I didn't knock a single pin down the first time I went bowling."

Ryan raised an eyebrow, chuckling. "Somehow that doesn't make me feel very confident."

Gabriella giggled, nodding. "Yeah, I'm a terrible bowler. But I always have fun. For me it's more about hanging out with my friends than getting a good score."

A raucous, high-pitched cheer sounded over the din of clattering pins, and Ryan turned to see a group of little kids bumper-bowling a few lanes down. He turned back to Gabriella, grinning. "Yeah, I'm beginning to see that."

"Speak for yourselves," Taylor declared, standing to take her turn after Chad was finished. "We're going to beat those boys -- even if I have to do it single-handedly!"

Ryan shook his head and laughed. Sometimes, Taylor REALLY reminded him of Sharpay. Not that he would ever tell Taylor that!

Or Sharpay, for that matter.

-----

The bowling ball veered toward the left as it rolled down the lane, only managing to knock over one additional pin before disappearing.

Gabriella saw Ryan's shoulders slump, so she quickly called out, "It's okay," giving her teammate a cheerful thumbs-up.

Ryan shook his head as he started back towards the seats. "I don't know why, but I just can't get the ball to go STRAIGHT."

Passing his friend on his way to the ball return, Chad put a hand on Ryan's shoulder, whispering loudly into his ear, "You seem to have that effect on a LOT of things."

Ryan's face turned red as he ducked his head, but his self-satisfied smirk belied any true embarrassment. The two boys locked eyes, grinning at each other, and Gabriella couldn't help but smile as well -- she loved seeing them both so happy. And ever since their first date last weekend, they seemed much more comfortable with each other, even in front of their friends.

Not that they were ready to make their relationship public yet! As far as Gabriella knew, she was the only person outside of the Evans family who knew that the two boys were dating.

Although Gabriella found it hard to believe that the other Wildcats couldn't tell that SOMETHING was going on between the two boys. The meaningful glances, the lingering touches, the flirty banter -- wasn't it OBVIOUS?!

Apparently not.

"C'mon, Chad," Troy said with friendly impatience, clearly oblivious to the sparks that were flying between the two boys. "You're up."

Ryan and Chad sniggered at Troy's unintended innuendo, and Gabriella rolled her eyes -- sweet as they were together, they were still teenage boys!

Ryan hurried off the lane, taking a seat next to Gabriella as Chad picked up his bowling ball.

"Watch and learn, Evans," Chad bragged before making a graceful approach to the line…and bowling a perfectly-executed gutter ball.

"Thanks, Chad," Ryan teased. "I'll definitely try that next time."

Chad grumbled as he waited impatiently for his ball to return.

Gabriella grinned at Ryan, whispering, "You two are so cute together," causing the blond boy to blush.

Then, remembering their morning poolside conversation, Gabriella put a friendly hand on his knee. "But what happened?" she asked, her voice low so the others couldn't hear. "I thought you two were supposed to go on a date tonight."

Ryan shrugged in response while his eyes remained trained on Chad. "We're on it," he said simply.

Gabriella didn't understand. "What?"

Ryan gestured around at their friends in the bowling alley. "This IS our date -- Chad and I were going bowling together tonight…."

"By yourselves!" Gabriella gasped, horrified as she realized what had happened.

Ryan nodded. "But then Troy kinda invited himself...and everyone else…and here we are."

Gabriella put her hands to her face. "Oh Ryan, I'm so sorry! I had no idea we were barging in on your date!"

Ryan smiled, shrugging. "It's okay -- I'm having fun."

Hearing Chad cheer after rolling a spare, Ryan added, "And obviously Chad is, too."

-----

Taylor watched in bemusement as Chad celebrated his second spare of the evening, pumping his fist in the air and hooting triumphantly.

"Okay, okay," she said, playfully shoving Chad aside as she headed toward the ball return. "Step aside and let the master through."

"'Master'?!" Chad shot back. "In your dreams, McKessie!"

"I only need to score a four and I'll be ahead of YOU." Taylor smiled proudly to herself, still reveling in the strike she'd bowled during her previous turn.

"A four?" Chad scoffed. "Oh, you mean what Ryan just bowled?"

"HEY!" Gabriella called out from her seat, defending her teammate's honor. "Let's keep the competition friendly, okay?"

Chad put up his hands in concession. "Hey, I'm friendly," he called out to Gabriella, before turning to Taylor and whispering with a smirk, "I love a friendly ass-kicking, don't you?"

Taylor rolled her eyes, but truthfully she was enjoying the competitive banter with Chad. In the past, when they'd gone on double-dates with Troy and Gabriella, they'd always teamed up together to slaughter East High's golden couple. But Troy and Gabriella were such terrible bowlers, and were so completely unconcerned with their horrendous scores, that the landslide victories had always seemed somewhat hollow. But now, playing AGAINST Chad, Taylor felt like she was finally matched against a worthy opponent.

Taylor heard the satisfying clatter of pins as her bowling ball made contact. But instead of the strike she had been hoping for, the 7 and 10 pins remained standing.

"Good job!" Gabriella called, offering Taylor a cheerful thumbs-up.

Taylor sighed. For Gabriella, who had yet to knock over more than five pins in a single turn, it WAS a good job. But Taylor knew that a 7-10 split was the hardest spare to get, and she knew CHAD knew it, too.

"Nice going, McKessie," Chad teased.

Troy was more helpful. "It looks like you need to shoot for the outer edge," he said, pointing to the diagram on the overhead scoring monitor.

Chad laughed. "Oh, you mean the gutter! Hey, maybe Ryan can give you some pointers on that."

"Very funny," Ryan said sarcastically, swatting Chad on the knee.

Taylor watched as her ball appeared at the ball return, almost dreading her next bowl. As she gripped the ball and approached the line, she heard Chad chant, "GUTTER! GUTTER! GUTTER!"

Her competitive fire re-stoked by Chad's immature distraction tactics, Taylor concentrated even harder on aiming for the outside edge. She smoothly released her ball at the line, unable to hide her delight when it hit the 7-pin JUST RIGHT, sending it careening into the 10-pin.

"YES!" Taylor cried out victoriously. Turning to face Chad, she stabbed her index finger at him and added smugly, "In your face, Danforth!"

Troy stood to take his turn, patting Taylor on the shoulder as he reached the ball return. "Hey, remember, FRIENDLY competition."

"WHATEVER!" Taylor and Chad intoned in unison, laughing as they met each other's eyes.

-----

"Good job," Gabriella called out, giving Ryan two thumbs up for knocking over four pins.

Troy knew that Gabriella was just being friendly to her teammate -- so why did he still feel a twinge of jealousy every time she cooed over the blond boy? Troy was confident that Gabriella wasn't interested in Ryan -- and that clearly Ryan wasn't interested in her. But Troy couldn't help feeling threatened.

So Troy tried to repress his jealous impulses by being helpful instead. "Right there," he said, pointing to the monitor. "You just need to hit it right there." He had never noticed it when they'd been bowling before, but it was actually helpful to have the arrow pointing out where to aim the ball.

Not that Troy had much control over his aim! Nor, for that matter, did Ryan!

"You can do it," Gabriella said cheerfully.

Ryan shrugged and bowled his second ball -- and actually managed to knock over all the remaining pins!

"Yay!" Taylor and Gabriella both leapt up and rushed over to Ryan's side, the three of them jumping up and down in an excited group hug.

"Good job!" Gabriella kept repeating as they started back towards the chairs, her arm still wrapped around Ryan.

Troy shook his head, as if to shake away the jealousy he was feeling. 'They're just friends,' he kept reminding himself. 'Putting her arm around him doesn't mean anything -- even Chad keeps putting his arm around Ryan tonight. I shouldn't stress about it.'

But Chad, it seemed, was also bothered by their touchy-feely competitors. "Okay, GIRLS -- enough fuss! Ryan's not the only guy to bowl a spare tonight, you know."

"We know," Taylor said. "But he's the best looking boy to bowl one."

Troy couldn't help but laugh at Chad's hurt expression. 'But that's what Chad gets for taunting Taylor,' he thought with amusement.

Her comment must've made quite an impression, though, because Chad rolled a gutter ball.

"Right there," Taylor teased, pointing towards the monitor, which showed the ten still-standing pins and a red arrow aimed directly at the center pin. "You need to hit it RIGHT THERE."

"Ha ha," Chad said, rolling his eyes.

"Don't worry about it, Chad," Troy called out, trying to back his friend. "You're doing fine."

Gabriella must've felt bad for him as well for she gave him a thumbs-up, calling out, "It's okay."

Troy smiled. Gabriella was such a genuinely nice person. He loved spending time with her, both alone and in a group setting. She always tried to make everyone feel at ease and welcome -- because she'd spent so much time as the new girl herself, she knew what it felt like to not belong.

But she belonged now. She was a Wildcat, through and through.

And she was also Troy's girlfriend -- no matter how many times she hugged Ryan!

Troy heard Gabriella call out, "You can do it, Chad," and realized how much he loved the fact that Gabriella wasn't too competitive, either. Watching the sparks fly between Chad and Taylor was a fun spectator sport, but he didn't want to play that game. And even though he and Gabriella were on opposite teams tonight, she still cheered for him as well.

"It's okay," Gabriella called after Troy's next gutter ball, grinning at him.

"That's easy for YOU to say," Chad grumbled, clearly upset that Troy was doing so badly.

"Nice way to support your teammate," Taylor shot back.

As Troy returned to his seat, he took ahold of Gabriella's hand as they passed each other, glad to feel her touch, if only for a moment.

Perhaps that touch had been a distraction for Gabi, however, for she instantly bowled a gutter ball.

"That's okay," Chad mocked in a high falsetto, holding up his thumbs. "Good job."

Ryan reached over and smacked Chad on the head. "Be nice."

Troy laughed.

And although Ryan was defending Gabriella's honor, Troy somehow didn't feel jealous anymore.

-----

Zeke laughed as his team captain rolled yet another gutter ball. It was amusing that a great athlete like Troy was so bad at bowling.

Not that Zeke cared about the score -- he was just here tonight to have fun.

And to grill Ryan for info about Sharpay.

But he was having trouble getting close enough to Ryan to talk to him. The two girls kept fawning all over the blond boy, and Chad was constantly sitting next to him and chatting. Didn't they realize how much Zeke needed to talk to Ryan?

"Yes!" Troy cheered from the lane. "Four pins! This calls for a celebration!"

Troy started towards the pop machines, calling back, "You want a pop, Gabs?"

"Sure -- thanks," Gabriella said, standing and heading for the ball return.

"That's a good idea," Chad said, hopping up. "You want one, Ryan? Root beer, right?"

Ryan smiled. "You got it."

As Chad hurried across the bowling alley to catch up with his best friend, Zeke took the opportunity to move over next to the suddenly-alone Ryan.

"Root beer, huh?" Zeke asked. "So...does your sister like root beer, too?"

Ryan shrugged. "I guess."

"Or does she prefer something else? Coke? Sprite? Dr. Pepper? Or is she one of those girls that only drinks diet?"

Ryan shook his head. "No, she's definitely not one of them. My sister feels that artificial sweeteners are too 'low-brow'."

"So what DOES Sharpay like to drink?"

"Well, lately she's been totally into that Vitamin Water stuff -- I swear, she goes through at least ten bottles a day."

'Vitamin Water -- check,' Zeke mentally noted before asking aloud, "And what about food -- what does she like to eat?"

"Chocolate," Ryan answered without hesitation.

"What kind of chocolate? Chocolate bars? Chocolate truffles? Chocolate cake? Chocolate cream--"

"Yes!" Ryan answered before Zeke had finished.

"'Yes' to which?"

"'Yes' to all! Sharpay loves ANYTHING chocolate...though she's particularly partial to chocolate eclairs."

Zeke was thrilled -- eclairs were becoming one of his specialties, thanks to Chef Michael. "Does she prefer custard or whipped cream filling? Because I know--"

"Zeke, it's your turn," Gabriella said, having finished hers.

'Not now!' Zeke thought. "Uh...I'll just pass this turn."

Ryan gave him a funny look. "You're gonna pass?"

"Yeah," Zeke said. "As I was saying, I know this great recipe for--"

"Zeke, you CAN'T pass!" Taylor insisted, staring open-mouthed up at the monitor. "You're bowling a perfect game!"

"Who's bowling a what?" Troy asked as he and Chad returned, pop cans in hand.

"It's Zeke -- look!" Taylor pointed to the monitor. "He's bowling a perfect game!"

"Holy crap, dude!" Chad exclaimed.

"Hey man, that's awesome!" Troy said, patting Zeke on the back.

"What's a 'perfect game'?" Ryan asked.

"It's no big deal," Zeke insisted. He didn't want anyone making a fuss -- he just wanted to continue talking about Sharpay...with the person who knew her best!

"It's a HUGE deal," Gabriella insisted. Then to Ryan she explained, "A 'perfect game' is where you roll a strike every time."

"EVERY time?!" Ryan's eyes grew wide with amazement and admiration. "Wow! That IS a huge deal!"

"No it's not," Zeke repeated, but suddenly he was beginning to wonder. If Ryan was impressed, might Sharpay be, too?

"C'mon, Zeke, you can't pass your turn now," Taylor said.

"Yeah," Chad added, "we gotta watch the master at work."

Zeke smiled to himself. He'd bowled a few perfect games before, but never in front of Sharpay's brother!

And he suddenly realized that, if he did, he might feature prominently in Ryan's recap of the game to his sister!

So Zeke hopped to his feet and headed for the ball return, not even caring that Chad instantly took his seat. Zeke needed to concentrate if he was going to impress Sharpay!

-----

"Now we know," Chad said as he tied his sneakers. "Next time, we'll divide the teams differently -- Zeke on one team, and all the rest of us on the other."

Troy laughed. "Sounds like a plan."

"Yet he'd probably still win," Gabriella pointed out. "After all, even summing all five of our scores, we didn't reach 300 points."

Chad smiled and put his arm around Ryan's shoulders. "That's because Ryan was a bowling virgin. But you guys saw how fast he learned -- he's gonna be in MY league before you know it."

Ryan ducked his head, grinning at Chad.

Suddenly struck with a chivalrous impulse, Chad reached over and grabbed Ryan's discarded rental shoes. "I'll take these back for you, Ducky," he said, leaping up and hurrying over to the counter. The tattooed man grumbled as he took the shoes back, and Chad was pleased that he'd spared Ryan from a second unpleasant encounter with the man.

A moment later the rest of the gang joined Chad at the counter, and then they all headed out.

However, they hadn't even reached the door when Zeke exclaimed, "Ooh -- video bowling!" and immediately veered off towards the arcade.

A moment later, Troy and Zeke were engrossed in a game of video bowling -- much to the girls' annoyance.

"C'mon," Taylor said impatiently. "I'm starving -- let's go."

"Just one game?" Troy pleaded with his girlfriend.

Gabriella relented and smiled.

"Fine," Taylor said, sighing. "Then I'm gonna hit the restroom."

"Oh, me, too," Gabriella said, walking off with her friend.

Chad had always thought it was weird that girls went to the bathroom together. But he suddenly realized that he and Ryan hadn't gotten to spend any time alone all evening -- even though this was SUPPOSED to be a date. And Troy and Zeke were now distracted -- surely they wouldn't notice if he and Ryan snuck off together to the little boys' room.

"Uh...I think I'll go to the restroom, too," Chad said, trying to subtly get Ryan's attention.

But Ryan seemed engrossed with the video monitor. Apparently subtle wasn't going to work.

"Ryan," Chad said, "didn't you drink a lot of root beer this evening?"

Ryan looked blankly at his date. "Not really -- I only had one can."

Chad sighed -- didn't Ryan see the opportunity they were missing?

"But don't you need to...," Chad nodded his head in the direction of the restroom, "...YOU know...USE the facilities before we go?"

"Oh!" Ryan said, realization dawning. "Yeah, maybe I SHOULD go to the restroom."

"Yeah, you guys go ahead," Troy said absently, not looking away from the game. "We'll be here."

As Ryan and Chad headed off in the direction of the men's room, Chad had to fight the urge to grab Ryan's arm and RUN! But once they got inside, the door was shut behind them, and it was clear that they were alone, Chad threw all caution to the wind, shoving Ryan against the wall and pressing his lips firmly against Ryan's.

When they came up for air, Ryan grinned at Chad. "The mens' room at a bowling alley -- how romantic! You take me to the nicest places, Chad!"

Chad laughed. "I have FOUR words for you, Evans -- Lava. Springs. Laundry. Room."

"Touché," Ryan conceded before resuming the kiss.

-----

"Where are Ryan and Chad?" Gabriella asked, looking around as she and Taylor returned to the arcade.

"Huh?" Troy asked. "Oh -- they went to the bathroom."

"Together?" Taylor asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"Damn!" Troy said, pulling his hands off the controls. "That's it for me -- though I did score better than in ACTUAL bowling."

"All right!" Gabriella enthused, raising a hand to give her boyfriend a high-five.

"Not me," Zeke said, having completed his turn as well. "I barely bowled a 250 on this thing."

"Well, I'm hungry," Taylor said impatiently, looking at her watch. "What's taking Ryan and Chad so long?"

"Maybe they fell in?" Zeke joked.

Somehow Gabriella doubted the delay had anything to do with toilets.

"I'll go get them," Troy said. He started towards the restroom, but Gabriella quickly grabbed his arm.

"Don't!" Gabriella said, quickly trying to come up with an excuse why Troy shouldn't go after them. "Um...I'm sure they'll be along shortly."

Luckily, the words were barely out of her mouth when the two boys reappeared.

"All right," Troy said, clapping his hands together authoritatively. "Let's go get pizza."

As they headed out of the bowling alley, Gabriella noticed that Chad's hair looked mussed, and Ryan's bowler hat was on straight, a sure sign that it had been hastily replaced.

She smiled to herself -- she was pleased to know that at least Chad and Ryan's date hadn't been a TOTAL waste!

THE END