Fic: Light Bulb Moment
Title: Light Bulb Moment
Author: queenitsy
Rating: PG-13
Notes: This is something of a sequel to Body Shots and Broom Closets (NC17), taking place about a month later -- though it deals mostly with Chad and Troy's friendship. Thanks to poisonivory for the beta. Spoilers for HSM3!
Also: everything I know about basketball I learned from Wikipedia. I apologize deeply in advance.
Summary:
"One question. Does Berkeley play...?"
"Oh yeah. We're scheduled to kick some Redhawk butt next November."
Chad's stomach was tight with trepidation. He was nervous and not handling the ball well in warm ups -- not that it mattered. That was the thing about being a freshman; it didn't matter how good he was, it didn't matter that he had a full scholarship based on his basketball skills. He was a freshman, so he spent most of every game on the bench, unless they were winning by a whole lot (or, very rarely, losing by a whole lot). He played more than the other freshmen, but still. It kind of sucked.
"Corky!"
Chad spun in time to get rushed by two of his teammates -- probably the two he knew best. Matt grabbed him around the neck, verging on strangulation, while Snorts ground his knuckles against Chad's skull, until Chad managed to struggle free and turn to glare at them. They both grinned back guiltlessly.
"You never do that to other freshmen," Chad griped.
"The other freshmen aren't pocket sized," Matt answered. "So how you doing, little bro?"
Chad scowled. "Fine, thanks."
"Don't tell me you're nervous about a team whose mascot is a gummy bear," Snorts said, grabbing his arm and sitting him down on the bleachers. The sat on either side of him, and Chad knew an intervention when he saw one.
"Golden bear. And I'm fine." He glowered.
Matt and Snorts exchanged skeptical looks. "So," Matt said conversationally, bouncing his basketball against his knee, "Shar says that you know someone on the Berkeley team."
"Sharpay talks too much." Chad rolled his eyes, annoyed he had ever accidentally introduced them.
"He makes a point," Snorts agreed. "She also -- oh, you missed this, Corky, you were at your dorm -- I don't know quite how to describe this noise. It's not a moan, it was more -- 'Oh... Ohhhhhh... Matty! Oh Matty!' and then -- Ow, dude!"
Chad had been smart enough to scoot back, so he avoided the crossfire as Matt shoved Snorts hard enough to send him sprawling. But Snorts was laughing as he sat up and shoved Matt back. "If you don't like it, dude, be quieter! We have thin walls!"
"The point," Matt said, evidently choosing the high road, "is that we know Bolton's going to be here, and you might be a little... Something."
"Well, I'm not. I just want to kick his ass."
"And that does not sound like the super-sweet little froshie we know and love," Snorts said. "Aaaaand we both remember Bolton practicing with us a couple years ago, but here you are, and he's a," Snorts snickered, "gummy bear."
"Shut up," Chad answered.
"So what -- "
"He wanted to be closer to his girlfriend." Chad stood abruptly. "So he turned down the Redhawks. It was a free ride. His dad's an alum. And I'd already said yes." He grabbed the ball out of Matt's hands. "He made his choice, and now we kick his ass."
"All right, then." Snorts shrugged. "If you want to talk -- "
"About what? He's my friend, I'm happy to see him, and I'll be a lot happier about it after we -- "
"Kick his ass, got it." Matt stood and stretched, yawning, as he added, "Of course, you'll have trouble with that if you -- " lightning-quick, he reached out and snatched the ball from Chad's hands, "can't even hold on to -- "
Chad was after him as he ran for the basket, and Chad barely blocked the shot and even managed to snatch it on the rebound. But as he spun, the door to the gym kicked open, and the UC Berkeley Golden Bears began to file in to get warmed up.
Chad froze. And watched. And there Troy was, a good head shorter than anyone else on his team. His hair was a little bit too long -- more so than usual, even -- and he was talking with one of the guys on his team, but he froze, too. Looked up.
Chad spun the ball in his hand nervously. Troy paused, said something to his friend, and pointed at Chad. Who suddenly felt Matt right behind him, which was kind of reassuring. But Troy's point became a wave and a nod, and Chad returned it. And then Matt grabbed the ball again and went back to the basket. Chad shook off the strangeness and took off after him.
--
The crowd was amazing. There was nothing like a home game. Chad's parents and his little sister were there, just a couple rows back; Coach and Mrs. Bolton were next to them, though Coach Bolton was wearing purple and gold. Which was kind of weird. Chad also saw some of the kids -- now seniors -- who'd been Wildcats with him. More of them than would show up for a typical game.
That was the thing the Redhawks didn't get about Chad's background. East High was a basketball school. Like, a ridiculous one. Getting into U of A's basketball program was the most amazing thing anyone could do, and everyone at the school -- and all of their parents and family, and basically everyone who knew anyone who went to East -- had known Troy was bound for U of A. Destined for it from birth. Chad was good, certainly good enough to get in, but everyone had always been rooting for Troy first and foremost. But Troy turned them down last minute, so now...
Showdown of the century. Bolton vs. Danforth. Traitor vs. Home Town Hero. Someone could have sold tickets.
Okay, U of A did sell tickets. But not for that reason.
Even Sharpay Evans was there. So she was somehow simultaneously filing her nails and talking on her cell, but she was there. Which was sweet, sort of, since Chad knew she was only there for Matt.
And the crowd was really excited, because it was pretty clear within minutes of the buzzer that Berkeley was having an off day. Or... Well, maybe they just weren't that good. Good enough -- they had a pretty good record, and they obviously knew what they were doing. But U of A was a basketball school the same way East High was -- they were elite. And intense. And Berkeley didn't really stand a chance.
Chad just didn't know whether to be smug because they were winning, or annoyed because Troy was getting playing time and he wasn't. Though even that worry became moot: at halftime they were comfortably ahead and (after Matt exchanged some quiet, suspicious-looking words with the coach, who rolled his eyes but nodded) Chad actually got to play.
Against Troy.
It was both the most intense thing he'd ever done, and the most normal. Because despite the crowd, and the score, and the whole being rivals thing, Chad had been playing against Troy since they'd learned to dribble. They were working a person-to-person defense, and pitting Chad against Troy was only natural since they were by far the smallest guys on the court, so when Troy got the ball, Chad stealing it was natural -- and Chad knew exactly where Troy would be when he tried for a rebound off one of a missed shot, and he knocked it away from Troy and towards Snorts, who got the basket.
Troy had just enough time to shoot him an annoyed look, but Chad barely noticed it. Too much adrenaline -- even if Troy was a little more in his face after that. Actually, that helped. It got Chad fired up. Which, he could tell, got Troy more fired up until, next time Chad snatched the ball, Troy actually gave him a hearty push. Chad lost control of the ball -- which sucked -- and one of Troy's teammates grabbed it.
Chad didn't swear, even as the crowd gasped. He was sure his dad yelled something angry, and he thought he actually heard Coach Bolton yell back, which would have been hilarious if Berkeley hadn't scored off Chad's screw up -- and if Chad hadn't been yanked and put back on the bench immediately. He all but growled until he got to go back in. And this time, when he covered Troy, he didn't bother to keep it gentle.
"Hey -- " Troy started, but that was as far as he got, because Chad had the ball. And then Matt had the ball, and they had the basket back. Chad shot Troy a smug look and Troy glared as they made their way down the court again. And then Troy shocked the hell out of Chad by going left, leaving Chad in completely the wrong position, and Troy managed to take a shot himself. And sink it.
A few cheers went up. Despite everything, Troy was a local kid, with local fans. He shot a smirk at Chad.
"Learned something new, did you?" Chad muttered. Not that Troy could hear him. Fine. Chad had learned some new tricks, too -- like smoothing out his layup enough to be reliable. He managed to cut into position, Matt got him the ball, and booyah. Perfect.
"Hey!" Troy yelped again, surprised.
"Gotcha," Chad called back.
It actually was the best he'd played all season. And he only got better as they got closer to the end -- and he didn't get taken out again. They wrapped it up at 91-80, with Berkeley never managing to get a lead. Despite the victory noogies from his frat brothers -- being the shortest guy on the team had even more disadvantages than people assumed -- he couldn't stop grinning. His family came down to hug him, Sharpay actually acknowledged his existence for half a second before kissing Matt on the cheek (Matt got no further physical contact from her until he showered, one of the foundational rules of their relationship), and Mrs. Bolton gave him a pat on the shoulder. He looked around and saw Coach Bolton talking to Troy. No shock there. They were pointing at the court, gesturing and getting excited, and Chad had a moment of seriously fond nostalgia. They were obviously talking about the game, and what Troy could have done better.
Even though Troy had gotten better at college.
So had Chad.
Matt appeared behind him. "Go talk to him," he urged, shoving Chad forward. "Come on, he played hard and so did you. Talllllk."
Chad bit his lip and watched. He knew Matt was right. He wanted to talk to Troy. He wanted to say hi to Coach Bolton. But he also wanted to laugh in Troy's face, which he knew was wrong, which was why he was hesitating. Most of why, anyway.
"Don't make me drag you," Matt said. "I'll do it."
"Stay out of it," Chad muttered. But stepped forward and walked towards Troy slowly. Paused. Stepped forward again.
And finally Troy yelled, "Jeez, Chad, aren't you even going to say hello?"
Chad broke into a grin and jogged the rest of the way. "Hey, Coach. Hoops. S'up?"
"'S'up'?" Troy mimicked. He stared at Chad for a few seconds
Chad stared back, pulse racing like they were back on the court. But then Troy held out a hand and Chad grabbed it, slapped it, hand-over-hand, down, slap, and -- and Troy's arms were around him. In a giant hug.
Chad laughed and hugged back. "Dude. Don't hate me because I've got way more skills than you," he said.
"Oh, when did the hallucinations start?"
"Didn't hallucinate the score," Chad said, pointing up where the final score was still lit.
"I didn't hallucinate you on the bench the whole first half," Troy answered.
"What, 'cause our starters don't run out of steam so fast they have to put in freshmen?"
"Ouch, dude." But Troy sounded pretty amused, then smacked Chad's arm and nodded at his dad. "My dad wants to tell you he thinks your shot is way better now, but he won't, because he's pretending he's not proud of you. Since he's obligated to root for me."
Chad ducked his head, grinning. "Yeah, I bet he said you're way more versatile than he realized. Imagine what we'd have done back at East if -- " He stopped abruptly.
But Troy nodded. "We did just about everything we could at East, anyway. Back to back champions."
"Right." Chad smiled. "The good old days. Before I -- what was it I just did? Oh yeah. Kicked your ass."
"I think other people were involved on both sides," Coach Bolton mused. "Don't be a sore winner."
"Then why are you grinning?" Chad asked. Because, while Coach had accepted his son's choice of school, he was a Redhawk himself.
"Don't gloat at Troy. Or I'll tell your dad on you." Coach Bolton laughed and slapped his shoulder. "Good game, both of you. Now. Troy. Dinner with the family? Or..." He gave Chad a look. "Did you have plans?"
"Uh..." Troy looked at Chad, too.
The plan had been... Well, barely planned. Implied at best. Visiting teams almost always crashed with the home team, which meant most of the guys from Berkeley would be staying at Chad's frat house. And of course, having visitors pretty much required them to have a party.
So Chad said, "Sorry, Coach. Troy's got plans. Right, Hoops?"
"Yep." Troy shrugged. "Sure do. Sorry, Dad. Bye!" He grabbed Chad's arm and dragged him away, then murmured, "I love my dad, but jeez, we lost, so what? Did we need to go through every play?"
"He just misses watching you play," Chad guessed. Troy grumbled something, which meant he was probably right. "Anyway, uh -- no hard feelings about the game?"
"It kind of sucked," Troy confessed. "But I'm going to kick your butt at one-on-one over Thanksgiving break."
"Yeah, we'll see."
Troy paused to wave at one of his team mates, and went back to the conversation as they both gathered their stuff to head off. "Soooo... Uh... How's the whole gay thing working out for you?"
Chad almost choked. "What?" He'd told Troy -- of course he'd told Troy -- but that was still completely out of left field.
"I heard cheerleaders talking."
"About what?!"
"Yoooou," Troy answered sing-songishly. "The Berkeley cheerleaders decided you're the cutest Redhawk, and the boy cheerleaders freaked when they heard you were gay."
"How did they happen to hear that?"
"Anyway," Troy said, ignoring the question in a deliberate way that implied he'd probably let it slip himself, "if any of them are at this frat party of yours, you can probably get laid. Though from what they said, it sounded like you probably know that."
Chad chuckled and led the way outside, walking towards the frat house instead of looking for one of the brothers to get a ride. "I... Uh, well. Wait. What did they say?"
Troy flushed and mumbled something incomprehensible.
"What?"
"Just. Um. Something about how guys probably." He coughed. "You know."
Chad probably shouldn't have been so amused by his best friend's embarrassment, but he figured it was better than gloating about winning. "Come on. At least tell me what the gossip about me is."
Scarlet-faced, Troy said in a rush, "Well, what Steve said was that guys probably beg to go to church with you, which I didn't get at first because I was thinking real church and that's not really a gay thing, right, but then -- " He cut off. "I figured it out."
Chad laughed and elbowed Troy. "Steve's overestimating me. A little."
"Okay, but you're being..." Troy gave him the sincere face. "Like, safe and stuff, right?"
"Really, a safe sex lecture? What about you and Gabi?"
"We don't!"
"Don't use condoms?" Chad frowned.
"We don't have -- you know!"
"Still?"
"We're waiting!"
"For what, Armageddon?"
"For... Like... You know, getting married. Or at least engaged."
Chad stopped walking and turned to give Troy a long, startled gaze. Then put an arm around him. "Wow. When did this happen?"
Troy shrugged. "I, uh, bought her a promise ring. Not an engagement ring, but you know, we talked a tiny bit, and maybe... Well, I'm thinking after we make it through freshman year..."
"Wow." Chad gave him a smile, inwardly reeling. Troy and Gabi had been serious since the moment they'd met, but the idea of them getting married and it being a forever thing really had never occurred to Chad. Not that he'd thought they'd break up, just... They were so young. All of them.
"She's got a plan," Troy continued. "If I ask her to marry me this summer, we're going to try and find a place together between Stanford and Berkeley next winter. And she says if we can live together without killing each other, then we should get married the summer after graduation."
"And you have kids..."
"Not even considering it until she finishes law school and passes the bar."
"I was joking." Chad shook his head. "Wild, man. You two really are... I'm sorry I never took you that seriously."
Troy shrugged. "It was high school. No one did. You know, until I... What was it my mom said? Right. Lost my mind and decided to ignore everything I'd ever worked for to chase after some girl." Troy stopped walking and so did Chad. Troy moved his bag from one shoulder to another and said, "You still hate me for it?"
"I never hated you," Chad mumbled. "I just..."
"Dude, come on. I'd have hated it if you was you following some girl -- guy."
"Hate is a strong word," Chad said. "I... You know... It sucked. But... I guess it's just you."
"I suck?"
"No! You know that's not what I meant." Chad groaned.
It was amazing how they'd never really talked about this. Troy had made his dramatic announcement and everyone had just sort of... dealt with it. And he and Troy had dealt with it by never actually talking about it, even when they'd hugged each other goodbye and Troy had driven off. They'd discussed vacation plans, they'd played hoops, they'd hung out. Chad had even finally worked up the nerve to come out, and Troy had given him a giant, reassuring hug. But they hadn't talked about Troy's last-minute choice at all.
So now there it was.
"I just -- I always thought it would be you and me," Chad said. "And instead, the only person I knew around here was Sharpay."
"I didn't know anyone," Troy mumbled. "And Gabi was way too busy to see me for the first few weeks."
"Must have been rough."
"Yeah. Not what I expected, anyway." He shrugged and they began walking again. Troy gestured around, encompassing the path they were on, the gym they'd just left, and the campus around them. "So this is it, huh? U of A. You're a Redhawk, dude!"
Chad grinned. "I know, right?"
"And wow. A frat boy." Troy grinned back. "You get paddled yet?"
Chad laughed. "Only recreationally."
"What?" Troy asked, then blanched. "Dude!"
"Kidding! ... Mostly."
Troy laughed and shoved him playfully as they walked. Chad was glad he'd decided to hike instead of catching a ride -- he knew that once they got to the house, it would be crowded and loud and they wouldn't have much of a chance to talk. And Matt had been right. He had needed this.
Chad's phone rang. He dug for it in his bag, saw the name, and grinned. "Hey, Ry! What's up?"
Ryan's voice echoed back at him. "Big game night, right? How'd it go?"
Troy gave him an intrigued look.
"Well, I promised Coach Bolton I wouldn't gloat in Troy's face, so why don't you let him tell you how we totally kicked his ass?" He shoved the phone into Troy's hand.
"...Hello?" Troy asked.
Chad couldn't hear Ryan's answer, but he did see Troy's eyes go wide with surprise.
"Hey! I, uh -- Ahahaha, yeah. Yeaaaah, we lost." Pause. "Not pathetically!"
"It was totally pathetic," Chad mumbled.
"Shut up," Troy hissed at him, then, "Not you! I mean." He sighed. "91-80, and Chad is never going to let me forget it. Hey, since when do you call -- Oh, okay. Have a nice -- " He handed the phone to Chad. "I asked since when he calls you to ask about games, and he said he had to go and hung up on me. What...?"
Chad shrugged. "Ryan's Ryan," he said, as if that explained it all.
"True enough." Troy sighed. "So you really are never going to let me live this down, huh?"
"What, losing? Of course not." Chad laughed.
Troy shrugged. "You were really good out there. I mean... Berkeley's good. The program is good. But it's not the Redhawks."
Troy was giving him some kind of sincere, puppy-dog-eyed face. Chad wasn't entirely sure why.
"I guess..." Troy hesitated. "I mean, I made the right choice, Chad. You know that, right?"
"Yeah, I know," Chad said.
"You do? Because... I always figured if I didn't go to U of A, you know, that was it. I'd be miserable if my life wasn't all-hoops, all the time. But I'm not."
"I know," Chad said. And just like that, he finally got it, like a cartoon light bulb had turned on above him. "Dude, Troy. Bro. This is me. I'm kind of too short for the NBA, so this is probably all I get, and I'd hate myself forever if I didn't do it all the way." He looked over at Troy. "You... You don't need that, huh?"
Troy let out a relieved breath. "Exactly."
"You need Gabriella. And..." He realized he was actually getting it -- getting Troy -- for the first time since Gabriella had moved to Albuquerque. "And you need to do... Stuff. Like, the theater, but not..." He tripped over the words, not sure how to say it. "I'm all about hoops. And you're not all about any one thing, because that's... limiting for you."
"Yes! Thank you!" Troy yelped. "Now please tell my parents that!"
Chad laughed and dropped his bag to hug Troy again. Which was a little weird, maybe, but Troy didn't seem to care, because he hugged back.
"So since I get that," Chad said, "does this mean I can start gloating again?"
"Yeah, yeah." Troy rolled his eyes fondly. "Gloat away, Redhawk."
Chad grinned. "Kicked your ass, dude!"
They were approaching the frat house now. It was lit up with strings of Christmas lights year-round, and Chad could hear the music thumping from this far out. There would probably be a noise complaint lodged -- one that would mysteriously disappear when Sharpay told her father that they were just celebrating a Redhawks victory, it wasn't that big a deal, was it? Chad knew that wasn't why Matt was dating her, but it was awfully convenient.
They hadn't even made it up to the stoop before the door burst open. Snorts came flying out to throw a drunken arm around Chad. "Corky! Wondered where you were! Matt was about to send us out searching! Dude! The keg just got here, come on!" He paused. "Hey, you brought a tiny friend! Hi, Corky's Tiny Friend! Ever done a keg stand?"
Troy blinked a few times, looking overwhelmed. "Uh, no," he said. "I... I haven't."
"Tonight's your lucky night, Corky's Tiny Friend."
"Uh, my name is Troy."
"I like Tiny Friend better." He put an arm around each of them and steered them towards the door. "Keg stands ahoy! Unless you'd rather do a body shot."
"No!" Chad yelped.
Snorts laughed. "Well. Let's show the Gummy Bears we're good hosts, and get both of you nice and trashed. Welcome to the University of Albuquerque, Tiny Friend."
"Seems like a nice place to visit," Troy mused.
Author: queenitsy
Rating: PG-13
Notes: This is something of a sequel to Body Shots and Broom Closets (NC17), taking place about a month later -- though it deals mostly with Chad and Troy's friendship. Thanks to poisonivory for the beta. Spoilers for HSM3!
Also: everything I know about basketball I learned from Wikipedia. I apologize deeply in advance.
Summary:
"One question. Does Berkeley play...?"
"Oh yeah. We're scheduled to kick some Redhawk butt next November."
Chad's stomach was tight with trepidation. He was nervous and not handling the ball well in warm ups -- not that it mattered. That was the thing about being a freshman; it didn't matter how good he was, it didn't matter that he had a full scholarship based on his basketball skills. He was a freshman, so he spent most of every game on the bench, unless they were winning by a whole lot (or, very rarely, losing by a whole lot). He played more than the other freshmen, but still. It kind of sucked.
"Corky!"
Chad spun in time to get rushed by two of his teammates -- probably the two he knew best. Matt grabbed him around the neck, verging on strangulation, while Snorts ground his knuckles against Chad's skull, until Chad managed to struggle free and turn to glare at them. They both grinned back guiltlessly.
"You never do that to other freshmen," Chad griped.
"The other freshmen aren't pocket sized," Matt answered. "So how you doing, little bro?"
Chad scowled. "Fine, thanks."
"Don't tell me you're nervous about a team whose mascot is a gummy bear," Snorts said, grabbing his arm and sitting him down on the bleachers. The sat on either side of him, and Chad knew an intervention when he saw one.
"Golden bear. And I'm fine." He glowered.
Matt and Snorts exchanged skeptical looks. "So," Matt said conversationally, bouncing his basketball against his knee, "Shar says that you know someone on the Berkeley team."
"Sharpay talks too much." Chad rolled his eyes, annoyed he had ever accidentally introduced them.
"He makes a point," Snorts agreed. "She also -- oh, you missed this, Corky, you were at your dorm -- I don't know quite how to describe this noise. It's not a moan, it was more -- 'Oh... Ohhhhhh... Matty! Oh Matty!' and then -- Ow, dude!"
Chad had been smart enough to scoot back, so he avoided the crossfire as Matt shoved Snorts hard enough to send him sprawling. But Snorts was laughing as he sat up and shoved Matt back. "If you don't like it, dude, be quieter! We have thin walls!"
"The point," Matt said, evidently choosing the high road, "is that we know Bolton's going to be here, and you might be a little... Something."
"Well, I'm not. I just want to kick his ass."
"And that does not sound like the super-sweet little froshie we know and love," Snorts said. "Aaaaand we both remember Bolton practicing with us a couple years ago, but here you are, and he's a," Snorts snickered, "gummy bear."
"Shut up," Chad answered.
"So what -- "
"He wanted to be closer to his girlfriend." Chad stood abruptly. "So he turned down the Redhawks. It was a free ride. His dad's an alum. And I'd already said yes." He grabbed the ball out of Matt's hands. "He made his choice, and now we kick his ass."
"All right, then." Snorts shrugged. "If you want to talk -- "
"About what? He's my friend, I'm happy to see him, and I'll be a lot happier about it after we -- "
"Kick his ass, got it." Matt stood and stretched, yawning, as he added, "Of course, you'll have trouble with that if you -- " lightning-quick, he reached out and snatched the ball from Chad's hands, "can't even hold on to -- "
Chad was after him as he ran for the basket, and Chad barely blocked the shot and even managed to snatch it on the rebound. But as he spun, the door to the gym kicked open, and the UC Berkeley Golden Bears began to file in to get warmed up.
Chad froze. And watched. And there Troy was, a good head shorter than anyone else on his team. His hair was a little bit too long -- more so than usual, even -- and he was talking with one of the guys on his team, but he froze, too. Looked up.
Chad spun the ball in his hand nervously. Troy paused, said something to his friend, and pointed at Chad. Who suddenly felt Matt right behind him, which was kind of reassuring. But Troy's point became a wave and a nod, and Chad returned it. And then Matt grabbed the ball again and went back to the basket. Chad shook off the strangeness and took off after him.
--
The crowd was amazing. There was nothing like a home game. Chad's parents and his little sister were there, just a couple rows back; Coach and Mrs. Bolton were next to them, though Coach Bolton was wearing purple and gold. Which was kind of weird. Chad also saw some of the kids -- now seniors -- who'd been Wildcats with him. More of them than would show up for a typical game.
That was the thing the Redhawks didn't get about Chad's background. East High was a basketball school. Like, a ridiculous one. Getting into U of A's basketball program was the most amazing thing anyone could do, and everyone at the school -- and all of their parents and family, and basically everyone who knew anyone who went to East -- had known Troy was bound for U of A. Destined for it from birth. Chad was good, certainly good enough to get in, but everyone had always been rooting for Troy first and foremost. But Troy turned them down last minute, so now...
Showdown of the century. Bolton vs. Danforth. Traitor vs. Home Town Hero. Someone could have sold tickets.
Okay, U of A did sell tickets. But not for that reason.
Even Sharpay Evans was there. So she was somehow simultaneously filing her nails and talking on her cell, but she was there. Which was sweet, sort of, since Chad knew she was only there for Matt.
And the crowd was really excited, because it was pretty clear within minutes of the buzzer that Berkeley was having an off day. Or... Well, maybe they just weren't that good. Good enough -- they had a pretty good record, and they obviously knew what they were doing. But U of A was a basketball school the same way East High was -- they were elite. And intense. And Berkeley didn't really stand a chance.
Chad just didn't know whether to be smug because they were winning, or annoyed because Troy was getting playing time and he wasn't. Though even that worry became moot: at halftime they were comfortably ahead and (after Matt exchanged some quiet, suspicious-looking words with the coach, who rolled his eyes but nodded) Chad actually got to play.
Against Troy.
It was both the most intense thing he'd ever done, and the most normal. Because despite the crowd, and the score, and the whole being rivals thing, Chad had been playing against Troy since they'd learned to dribble. They were working a person-to-person defense, and pitting Chad against Troy was only natural since they were by far the smallest guys on the court, so when Troy got the ball, Chad stealing it was natural -- and Chad knew exactly where Troy would be when he tried for a rebound off one of a missed shot, and he knocked it away from Troy and towards Snorts, who got the basket.
Troy had just enough time to shoot him an annoyed look, but Chad barely noticed it. Too much adrenaline -- even if Troy was a little more in his face after that. Actually, that helped. It got Chad fired up. Which, he could tell, got Troy more fired up until, next time Chad snatched the ball, Troy actually gave him a hearty push. Chad lost control of the ball -- which sucked -- and one of Troy's teammates grabbed it.
Chad didn't swear, even as the crowd gasped. He was sure his dad yelled something angry, and he thought he actually heard Coach Bolton yell back, which would have been hilarious if Berkeley hadn't scored off Chad's screw up -- and if Chad hadn't been yanked and put back on the bench immediately. He all but growled until he got to go back in. And this time, when he covered Troy, he didn't bother to keep it gentle.
"Hey -- " Troy started, but that was as far as he got, because Chad had the ball. And then Matt had the ball, and they had the basket back. Chad shot Troy a smug look and Troy glared as they made their way down the court again. And then Troy shocked the hell out of Chad by going left, leaving Chad in completely the wrong position, and Troy managed to take a shot himself. And sink it.
A few cheers went up. Despite everything, Troy was a local kid, with local fans. He shot a smirk at Chad.
"Learned something new, did you?" Chad muttered. Not that Troy could hear him. Fine. Chad had learned some new tricks, too -- like smoothing out his layup enough to be reliable. He managed to cut into position, Matt got him the ball, and booyah. Perfect.
"Hey!" Troy yelped again, surprised.
"Gotcha," Chad called back.
It actually was the best he'd played all season. And he only got better as they got closer to the end -- and he didn't get taken out again. They wrapped it up at 91-80, with Berkeley never managing to get a lead. Despite the victory noogies from his frat brothers -- being the shortest guy on the team had even more disadvantages than people assumed -- he couldn't stop grinning. His family came down to hug him, Sharpay actually acknowledged his existence for half a second before kissing Matt on the cheek (Matt got no further physical contact from her until he showered, one of the foundational rules of their relationship), and Mrs. Bolton gave him a pat on the shoulder. He looked around and saw Coach Bolton talking to Troy. No shock there. They were pointing at the court, gesturing and getting excited, and Chad had a moment of seriously fond nostalgia. They were obviously talking about the game, and what Troy could have done better.
Even though Troy had gotten better at college.
So had Chad.
Matt appeared behind him. "Go talk to him," he urged, shoving Chad forward. "Come on, he played hard and so did you. Talllllk."
Chad bit his lip and watched. He knew Matt was right. He wanted to talk to Troy. He wanted to say hi to Coach Bolton. But he also wanted to laugh in Troy's face, which he knew was wrong, which was why he was hesitating. Most of why, anyway.
"Don't make me drag you," Matt said. "I'll do it."
"Stay out of it," Chad muttered. But stepped forward and walked towards Troy slowly. Paused. Stepped forward again.
And finally Troy yelled, "Jeez, Chad, aren't you even going to say hello?"
Chad broke into a grin and jogged the rest of the way. "Hey, Coach. Hoops. S'up?"
"'S'up'?" Troy mimicked. He stared at Chad for a few seconds
Chad stared back, pulse racing like they were back on the court. But then Troy held out a hand and Chad grabbed it, slapped it, hand-over-hand, down, slap, and -- and Troy's arms were around him. In a giant hug.
Chad laughed and hugged back. "Dude. Don't hate me because I've got way more skills than you," he said.
"Oh, when did the hallucinations start?"
"Didn't hallucinate the score," Chad said, pointing up where the final score was still lit.
"I didn't hallucinate you on the bench the whole first half," Troy answered.
"What, 'cause our starters don't run out of steam so fast they have to put in freshmen?"
"Ouch, dude." But Troy sounded pretty amused, then smacked Chad's arm and nodded at his dad. "My dad wants to tell you he thinks your shot is way better now, but he won't, because he's pretending he's not proud of you. Since he's obligated to root for me."
Chad ducked his head, grinning. "Yeah, I bet he said you're way more versatile than he realized. Imagine what we'd have done back at East if -- " He stopped abruptly.
But Troy nodded. "We did just about everything we could at East, anyway. Back to back champions."
"Right." Chad smiled. "The good old days. Before I -- what was it I just did? Oh yeah. Kicked your ass."
"I think other people were involved on both sides," Coach Bolton mused. "Don't be a sore winner."
"Then why are you grinning?" Chad asked. Because, while Coach had accepted his son's choice of school, he was a Redhawk himself.
"Don't gloat at Troy. Or I'll tell your dad on you." Coach Bolton laughed and slapped his shoulder. "Good game, both of you. Now. Troy. Dinner with the family? Or..." He gave Chad a look. "Did you have plans?"
"Uh..." Troy looked at Chad, too.
The plan had been... Well, barely planned. Implied at best. Visiting teams almost always crashed with the home team, which meant most of the guys from Berkeley would be staying at Chad's frat house. And of course, having visitors pretty much required them to have a party.
So Chad said, "Sorry, Coach. Troy's got plans. Right, Hoops?"
"Yep." Troy shrugged. "Sure do. Sorry, Dad. Bye!" He grabbed Chad's arm and dragged him away, then murmured, "I love my dad, but jeez, we lost, so what? Did we need to go through every play?"
"He just misses watching you play," Chad guessed. Troy grumbled something, which meant he was probably right. "Anyway, uh -- no hard feelings about the game?"
"It kind of sucked," Troy confessed. "But I'm going to kick your butt at one-on-one over Thanksgiving break."
"Yeah, we'll see."
Troy paused to wave at one of his team mates, and went back to the conversation as they both gathered their stuff to head off. "Soooo... Uh... How's the whole gay thing working out for you?"
Chad almost choked. "What?" He'd told Troy -- of course he'd told Troy -- but that was still completely out of left field.
"I heard cheerleaders talking."
"About what?!"
"Yoooou," Troy answered sing-songishly. "The Berkeley cheerleaders decided you're the cutest Redhawk, and the boy cheerleaders freaked when they heard you were gay."
"How did they happen to hear that?"
"Anyway," Troy said, ignoring the question in a deliberate way that implied he'd probably let it slip himself, "if any of them are at this frat party of yours, you can probably get laid. Though from what they said, it sounded like you probably know that."
Chad chuckled and led the way outside, walking towards the frat house instead of looking for one of the brothers to get a ride. "I... Uh, well. Wait. What did they say?"
Troy flushed and mumbled something incomprehensible.
"What?"
"Just. Um. Something about how guys probably." He coughed. "You know."
Chad probably shouldn't have been so amused by his best friend's embarrassment, but he figured it was better than gloating about winning. "Come on. At least tell me what the gossip about me is."
Scarlet-faced, Troy said in a rush, "Well, what Steve said was that guys probably beg to go to church with you, which I didn't get at first because I was thinking real church and that's not really a gay thing, right, but then -- " He cut off. "I figured it out."
Chad laughed and elbowed Troy. "Steve's overestimating me. A little."
"Okay, but you're being..." Troy gave him the sincere face. "Like, safe and stuff, right?"
"Really, a safe sex lecture? What about you and Gabi?"
"We don't!"
"Don't use condoms?" Chad frowned.
"We don't have -- you know!"
"Still?"
"We're waiting!"
"For what, Armageddon?"
"For... Like... You know, getting married. Or at least engaged."
Chad stopped walking and turned to give Troy a long, startled gaze. Then put an arm around him. "Wow. When did this happen?"
Troy shrugged. "I, uh, bought her a promise ring. Not an engagement ring, but you know, we talked a tiny bit, and maybe... Well, I'm thinking after we make it through freshman year..."
"Wow." Chad gave him a smile, inwardly reeling. Troy and Gabi had been serious since the moment they'd met, but the idea of them getting married and it being a forever thing really had never occurred to Chad. Not that he'd thought they'd break up, just... They were so young. All of them.
"She's got a plan," Troy continued. "If I ask her to marry me this summer, we're going to try and find a place together between Stanford and Berkeley next winter. And she says if we can live together without killing each other, then we should get married the summer after graduation."
"And you have kids..."
"Not even considering it until she finishes law school and passes the bar."
"I was joking." Chad shook his head. "Wild, man. You two really are... I'm sorry I never took you that seriously."
Troy shrugged. "It was high school. No one did. You know, until I... What was it my mom said? Right. Lost my mind and decided to ignore everything I'd ever worked for to chase after some girl." Troy stopped walking and so did Chad. Troy moved his bag from one shoulder to another and said, "You still hate me for it?"
"I never hated you," Chad mumbled. "I just..."
"Dude, come on. I'd have hated it if you was you following some girl -- guy."
"Hate is a strong word," Chad said. "I... You know... It sucked. But... I guess it's just you."
"I suck?"
"No! You know that's not what I meant." Chad groaned.
It was amazing how they'd never really talked about this. Troy had made his dramatic announcement and everyone had just sort of... dealt with it. And he and Troy had dealt with it by never actually talking about it, even when they'd hugged each other goodbye and Troy had driven off. They'd discussed vacation plans, they'd played hoops, they'd hung out. Chad had even finally worked up the nerve to come out, and Troy had given him a giant, reassuring hug. But they hadn't talked about Troy's last-minute choice at all.
So now there it was.
"I just -- I always thought it would be you and me," Chad said. "And instead, the only person I knew around here was Sharpay."
"I didn't know anyone," Troy mumbled. "And Gabi was way too busy to see me for the first few weeks."
"Must have been rough."
"Yeah. Not what I expected, anyway." He shrugged and they began walking again. Troy gestured around, encompassing the path they were on, the gym they'd just left, and the campus around them. "So this is it, huh? U of A. You're a Redhawk, dude!"
Chad grinned. "I know, right?"
"And wow. A frat boy." Troy grinned back. "You get paddled yet?"
Chad laughed. "Only recreationally."
"What?" Troy asked, then blanched. "Dude!"
"Kidding! ... Mostly."
Troy laughed and shoved him playfully as they walked. Chad was glad he'd decided to hike instead of catching a ride -- he knew that once they got to the house, it would be crowded and loud and they wouldn't have much of a chance to talk. And Matt had been right. He had needed this.
Chad's phone rang. He dug for it in his bag, saw the name, and grinned. "Hey, Ry! What's up?"
Ryan's voice echoed back at him. "Big game night, right? How'd it go?"
Troy gave him an intrigued look.
"Well, I promised Coach Bolton I wouldn't gloat in Troy's face, so why don't you let him tell you how we totally kicked his ass?" He shoved the phone into Troy's hand.
"...Hello?" Troy asked.
Chad couldn't hear Ryan's answer, but he did see Troy's eyes go wide with surprise.
"Hey! I, uh -- Ahahaha, yeah. Yeaaaah, we lost." Pause. "Not pathetically!"
"It was totally pathetic," Chad mumbled.
"Shut up," Troy hissed at him, then, "Not you! I mean." He sighed. "91-80, and Chad is never going to let me forget it. Hey, since when do you call -- Oh, okay. Have a nice -- " He handed the phone to Chad. "I asked since when he calls you to ask about games, and he said he had to go and hung up on me. What...?"
Chad shrugged. "Ryan's Ryan," he said, as if that explained it all.
"True enough." Troy sighed. "So you really are never going to let me live this down, huh?"
"What, losing? Of course not." Chad laughed.
Troy shrugged. "You were really good out there. I mean... Berkeley's good. The program is good. But it's not the Redhawks."
Troy was giving him some kind of sincere, puppy-dog-eyed face. Chad wasn't entirely sure why.
"I guess..." Troy hesitated. "I mean, I made the right choice, Chad. You know that, right?"
"Yeah, I know," Chad said.
"You do? Because... I always figured if I didn't go to U of A, you know, that was it. I'd be miserable if my life wasn't all-hoops, all the time. But I'm not."
"I know," Chad said. And just like that, he finally got it, like a cartoon light bulb had turned on above him. "Dude, Troy. Bro. This is me. I'm kind of too short for the NBA, so this is probably all I get, and I'd hate myself forever if I didn't do it all the way." He looked over at Troy. "You... You don't need that, huh?"
Troy let out a relieved breath. "Exactly."
"You need Gabriella. And..." He realized he was actually getting it -- getting Troy -- for the first time since Gabriella had moved to Albuquerque. "And you need to do... Stuff. Like, the theater, but not..." He tripped over the words, not sure how to say it. "I'm all about hoops. And you're not all about any one thing, because that's... limiting for you."
"Yes! Thank you!" Troy yelped. "Now please tell my parents that!"
Chad laughed and dropped his bag to hug Troy again. Which was a little weird, maybe, but Troy didn't seem to care, because he hugged back.
"So since I get that," Chad said, "does this mean I can start gloating again?"
"Yeah, yeah." Troy rolled his eyes fondly. "Gloat away, Redhawk."
Chad grinned. "Kicked your ass, dude!"
They were approaching the frat house now. It was lit up with strings of Christmas lights year-round, and Chad could hear the music thumping from this far out. There would probably be a noise complaint lodged -- one that would mysteriously disappear when Sharpay told her father that they were just celebrating a Redhawks victory, it wasn't that big a deal, was it? Chad knew that wasn't why Matt was dating her, but it was awfully convenient.
They hadn't even made it up to the stoop before the door burst open. Snorts came flying out to throw a drunken arm around Chad. "Corky! Wondered where you were! Matt was about to send us out searching! Dude! The keg just got here, come on!" He paused. "Hey, you brought a tiny friend! Hi, Corky's Tiny Friend! Ever done a keg stand?"
Troy blinked a few times, looking overwhelmed. "Uh, no," he said. "I... I haven't."
"Tonight's your lucky night, Corky's Tiny Friend."
"Uh, my name is Troy."
"I like Tiny Friend better." He put an arm around each of them and steered them towards the door. "Keg stands ahoy! Unless you'd rather do a body shot."
"No!" Chad yelped.
Snorts laughed. "Well. Let's show the Gummy Bears we're good hosts, and get both of you nice and trashed. Welcome to the University of Albuquerque, Tiny Friend."
"Seems like a nice place to visit," Troy mused.