𝚋𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚣𝚘𝚗𝚎 // 𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚔𝚢 𝚋𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚗 [𝟷]

1.18

-Thalia's POV-

"Thalia, I gotta go, I'm sorry," Ashlynn sighs.

"It's okay, Ash, I've gotta get on stage in a bit. I'm better now. Thank you," I smile weakly at her.

Then, Ricky comes in.

"Thalia," He breathes out.

"Ricky... What's wrong?" I ask.

"My mom... she brought her new boyfriend," He lets out. "What happened with you."

"My parents said they'd come. But they let me down... again. They promised. And then-" I stop talking because I know if I keep going I'll cry.

He pulls me into a hug.

"Lia, I'm so, so sorry." He sighs.

"Places for act two!" We hear.

"I gotta go, Ricky. I'm so sorry," I whisper to him.

"It's okay. I'll be on the sides cheering you on," He assures me. He then kissed my cheek. "Break a leg."

I walk out where everyone else is. Wait... Who's playing Troy?

EJ then comes up behind me and spins me around.

"Hey, are you feeling better?" He asks. "You shouldn't go on if you aren't."

"I'm fine, EJ. I'm glad to know you care," I chuckle.

"Of course I care. I care about you a lot, Thalia," He tells me.

I look down at my feet with a small smile.

He places his finger underneath my chin and tilts my head up to look at him.

I take note of the 14 on his jersey.

"So, you're Troy now?" I ask.

He nods with a chuckle.

"You know, now that it's actually happening, I don't think Troy really was the right role for me," He sighs.

"There will be the perfect role soon EJ, I can feel it," I grin at him. "We should probably get going, though. They can't do High School Musical without the lead."

I grab his hand and lead him to the stage.

~~~

It's time for Breaking Free.

"We're soaring, flying. There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach, if we're trying. So we're breaking free," EJ sings.

"I can't do it, Troy. Not with all of these people staring at me," Nini sighs.

"Look at me, Gabby. Right at me. Like the first time we sang together. Like kindergarten, remember?" He asks, placing his hand on her shoulder. They then both look at the door when Gina and Ricky enter.

"Like kindergarten, remember?" He repeats.

"Remember kindergarten? There's nothing like the friends you made back then. And they never really leave, do they?" EJ asks.

"What are you doing?" Nini asks.

"Something right, I hope," He sighs. "I'm gonna play to lose. I'm jot the Troy you want."

He then walks over to me. Nini then looks at Ricky, then back at me. This is her moment. She's asking if she can have Ricky...

I nod and give her a thumbs up.

She then starts singing a nod walks to Ricky. "You know the world can see us in a way that's different than who we are. Creating space between us." She pulls out her phone and turns on the flashlight. Just like the auditions. "Till we're separate hearts."

"EJ that was really big of you," I tell him. "Don't you still have feelings for her?"

"Well, I can see she doesn't have the same feelings for me, at least not anymore," He replies and then takes my hand in his. "Plus, I think my feelings have changed too."

"We're soaring! Flyin! There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach. If we're tryin! Yeah, we're breaking free. Oh we're breaking free," Ricky and Nini sing.

Then someone taps EJ's shoulder. I turn and see it's Gina.

"Hey, EJ. Thank you. For buying me the plane ticket," She thanks Ej and then turns to me. "And Thalia. I want to apologize, because I never properly did. I was a jerk and a terrible friend. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I hope you can find it in your heart to."

I smile at her and then pull her into a big hug.

"I think I can try," I chuckle.

I then look at Ricky and Nini. They look so happy. And that's how I know it was her.

It was always Nini for him, wasn't it?

I was probably just an infatuation for him. But I'm not mad. I understand.

Like EJ said...

I think my feelings have changed.