Confused

A/N: This was originally intended as a one-shot, but I might write a few more chapters… Anyway, I hardly see any of this pairing out there, so I decided to work on that problem :) This is set right after the song "Scream" in HMS 3. Enjoy! Please review!!
Rated M for some language and adult situations >>;;


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Troy headed back through the empty, dark hallways of East High, back toward the locker room. After all that frustration and his talk with Ms. Darbus, he felt rather drained, and he walked slowly with his hands shoved in his pockets and his head held a bit low.
 
Even after all that, he felt like nothing had been solved, that he still didn’t have any answers. So much pressure still to be dealt with, from every side, and all on him. And confusion… things he didn't even want to think about too hard, afraid of what he'd discover. He stopped as he reached the locker room doorway, leaning against it and sighing a deep, emotional sigh.
 
“Troy?”
 
The voice made him start, and almost lose his balance. Spinning around, he saw his best friend Chad walking towards him across the darkened gym. He breathed a sigh of relief, laughing softly and clutching his chest. “Aw, man! You scared me for a minute.”
 
“What are you doing here, man?” Chad asked as he reached his friend. He was holding a textbook, which he twirled unconsciously in his hands. Whether it was a basketball or not, it just looked natural for him to twirl things like that. It looked that way to Troy, anyway.
 
“I could ask you the same thing. Come on, we’ll talk in here, I have to change.” He motioned towards the locker room, and Chad followed him inside.
 
At their lockers, and Chad leaned against the red metal, scanning the room. “Man. Sure gonna miss this place, huh?”
 
Troy looked around, and couldn't help but smile. The locker room, with it's overpowering color scheme and heavy smell of stale sweat, was like a second home to them- the stage was like a third. He could barely imagine leaving it all behind. “Yeah.”
 
Chad smirked back. “So many memories, right? God, graduation’s gonna be bittersweet.”
 
Troy made a small sound of agreement as he entered his combination. “So, what’re you doing here, man?”
 
“Oh, I forgot my book for Physics.” He gestured to the textbook in his hands, and began to flip through it, sitting on the bench. “Did he say we need to read chapters 10 and 11 for the quiz on Monday?”
 
Troy smirks. “10 through 12.”
 
“Ah, shit.” Chad cursed, shutting the book and tossing to the floor.
 
“Yeah, I know.”
 
“Well, there goes my weekend,” he muttered, turning back to his friend. “Anyway, what about you?”
 
“Hmm?”
 
“What’re you doing here? Doesn’t look like you were shooting hoops in those jeans.” Chad eyed the clothing in question. The jeans were rather form-fitting, laying flush on his slim hips- not the kind of clothing you'd wear with the intention to work-out.
 
“Oh, right. I just had to, um… Just had to get rid of some frustration.”
 
Troy pulled his jersey up and over his head, baring his chest, and turned back towards his locker. At the sight of his body, Chad couldn’t help but bite his lip. Keen muscles, sculpted over the past years by sport and dance, were covered in velvety golden skin. Even the slightest movement made him ripple. Chad had seen the god-like torso a thousand times, and he still couldn’t help having to stifle a small moan of appreciation.
 
Is it so wrong to be attracted to your best friend? Chad couldn’t deny that he was, and not just because of his epic body. They’d been best friends forever- would be best friends forever- and Chad couldn’t help but love him. Figuring out that he was gay was only part of the problem-- he’d known that for a while. But when your best friend- your straight best friend, who’s in a (mostly) stable, heterosexual relationship- is the object of your affection… well, suffice to say, Chad was comfortable with keeping up the act.
 
Dating Taylor helped do just that. Sometimes he felt guilty for it, but he knew neither of them had romantic feelings for the other. They simply enjoyed each other’s company, it was nothing serious. Besides, it’s not like she wanted anything physical from him; she wanted to remain pure, and prevent any chance of being haunted later in her career by ‘youthful indiscretions’.
 
Chad was brought out of his thoughts as Troy fumbled with his locker, and the jersey slipped to the floor. Instinctively, Chad reached for it, and so did Troy, their hands meeting on the red cloth.
 
“Heh…” Chad laughed nervously, straightening up and putting the cloth into Troy’s hands, his own lingering near that bare, delicious chest just a bit too long. “So… frustration, huh? What kind of frustration can make the famous Troy Bolton visit an empty school in the middle of the night?”
 
Troy avoided his gaze, shifting back towards his locker.
 
“What, were you… Were you meeting someone here?”
 
His friend looked at him, narrowing his brow.
 
“I mean, frustration… Was there a girl here or something? Dude, Gabriella would be pissed-”
 
“What? No! No, there was no girl. Just Ms. Darbus.”
 
Chad looked at him as though he'd just completely lost his marbles.
 
“What…?” Troy finally caught the innuendo. “Oh, no! No, fuck, no, nothing like that! God… you sick bastard.” He laughed, and Chad laughed too. “I just ran into her in the theater. I think she pretty much lives there, or something.” He paused. “And it’s not that kind of frustration, anyway.”
 
“Then just what were you doing here, man?”
 
Troy sat on the bench, apparently forgetting about putting on a shirt for the time being. “Just… I dunno, so much stuff going on lately, with Gabriella, and school, my Dad… I just needed somewhere to… you know, to vent, I guess.”
 
“Vent?”
 
“And… scream.” The star player shrugged. Chad raised an eyebrow, but didn’t comment. For a jock, the kid could be pretty damn emo sometimes. “I’m just so confused, lately, you know?”
 
“Hey… you know you can come to me to vent, right? And talk?”
 
Troy looked away. “I know, man, but… not this time…”
 
“Why not?”
 
“I just… I dunno.” Chad almost thought he could see him blush slightly, looking away.
 
He put a hand on Troy’s leg, and another on his back in a friendly caress, looking at him concernedly. “Hey, I’m here for you, man. We’re teammates, remember? Wildcats!” He smirked. “Best friends… I’m here no matter what, just remember that. What’s so confusing that you can’t talk to me about it, huh?”
 
Troy was silent, and Chad noticed there was something else holding his friends attention. Troy was staring at Chad’s hand, which was on his thigh, unconsciously rubbing small gentle circles with his thumb. He hadn’t realized he’d been doing that; it’s spectacular how his blush played with his dark skin.
 
Chad stopped the circles. He took a breath to steady himself and cleared his throat, trying to act as though nothing was weird. “Best friends… forever, man.”
 
He looked up, and—How had their faces gotten that close?? And what was with Troy’s expression? He only has a moment to glance startled into his friend’s blue eyes before the other boy closes the distance between them, their lips meeting in a soft kiss.
 
‘He’s kissing me. He’s kissing ME!’ The words kept repeating themselves in Chad’s head, and he whimpered softly as he felt Troy’s tongue brush against his lips. He felt a hand cupping his face, maneuvering him deeper into the kiss. He moved his own hand up Troy’s back, feeling the muscles delicately flexing beneath the warm skin.
 
As suddenly as it had started, the kiss was over.
 
“Troy…” Chad breathed the name, looking up into his eyes.
 
The expression he saw stung like a knife though his heart; Troy was mortified.
 
“T-Troy, I-”
 
Troy jerked away, sliding down the bench to put some room between them.
 
“Troy!” Chad slid with him, reaching for his arm even as it was pulled away.
 
Troy stood, moving around the bench to his locker. “So. Um, yeah. Um, I- I’m going home now.” His voice and movements were nervous as he fiddled with his locker and its contents.
 
“I didn’t mean t-”
 
“Nothing happened!” He forced a laugh, shrugging playfully as he pulled the red jersey back over his head, apparently forgetting about changing back into his street clothes. “I’m sorry. Nothing happened. I’ll see you tomorrow-- I mean Monday. I’ll see you on Monday. Have a good weekend.”
 
“Troy, wait! Talk to me!” Chad climbed over the bench, grabbing Troy’s shoulder’s pleadingly. “Is- is this what you’re confused about?”
 
“I didn’t mean t--”
 
“Troy, please!”
 
“Chad, I can’t-- mmph!” His friend cut him off with another kiss, turning his words into a slight moan.
 
The pair stumbled into the corner without separating their lips, Chad pinning his friend against the lockers. Troy reached up, twisting his fingers into the tight curls of Chad’s hair. Chad pulled away for a moment, but Troy immediately pulled him back. The kiss became fiercer, needier, their tongues searching for control and their breath coming in short gasps.
 
Unable to control himself, Chad moved his mouth to Troy’s neck, licking hungrily over his pulse. He slid his hand down to his hips, hugging Troy’s groin against his own, and feeling his friend’s arousal pressing against his own through their jeans. ’Oh God yes…,’ he thought. It felt so good.
 
As good as kissing Troy was, Chad wasn't about to let this opportunity go to waste. He ran his hands up under the loose red jersey, feeling the muscled back flexing with heavy breathing. Lifting the shirt to reveal Troy’s stomach, he knelt, leaning down to lick a thin layer of fresh sweat from those chiseled abs he so adored. He felt Troy’s arousal pressing against his chest, and suddenly wanted to taste that, too.
 
With one hand, he fumbled with the button on the jeans, glancing up at his friend. Troy’s eyes were hooded, gazing down at him with a dark lust, his fingers weaving deeper into Chad’s hair. He didn’t protest as the zipper slipped down. His head fell back against the red lockers, causing a loud metallic shudder to cover his moan of anticipation.
 
"Hel-looo?" Both boys started as they heard the voice, followed by a knock on the locker room door. "Is somebody in there?"

They looked at each other with matching looks of horror. They knew that voice too well- It was Ms. Darbus.

Moving very quickly, Chad jerked away from Troy's crotch, grabbing his textbook off the ground. Troy zipped his pants, moving to face his body toward the lockers so as to hide the evidence of what they had been up to.

Blushing furiously, Troy called over his shoulder, "C-Come on in!"

The door opened, and Ms. Darbus stuck her curious head in. "Oh, Mister Bolton, it's you. I thought you had left by now. And Mister Danforth. What are you doing here?"

"Uh, hey Ms. Darbus!" Chad said, rather overenthusiastically, holding the physics book so it would hide a certain feature of his anatomy. "I just had to get my, um, homo-- er, homework." He flinched at his slip of the tongue. "Ran into Troy, so, um…"

Ms. Darbus raised an eyebrow. "I see." She shifted her gaze to Troy.

The brunette tried to ignore her, focusing on losing the aching arousal he'd been left with. 'For the love of God, go down!' Troy squeezed his eyes shut, willing himself to regain control.

"Mr. Bolton… are you alright?"

"Yeah! I just… had to change back to my, um…" 'Just think about something else, anything else, something unattractive. Old lady titties, facial tattoos, Sharpay! ' He was running out of ideas, and it wasn't working. "Ch-Chad, could you… ah, could you hand me my shirt?"

Chad just stared at him for a minute before he could comprehend the words. He blinked, moving to the open locker. "O-oh! Yeah, um…" He held out the dark fabric, which Troy hurriedly snatched from his hand.

Ms. Darbus looked between them suspiciously. "What exactly were the two of you up to?"

"Nothing!" Troy breathed through his nose impatiently- it wasn't going down. And his mind just kept going back to Chad. He had to get out of there.

"'Scuse me," he muttered, pulling off his jersey and putting on his sweatshirt, not pausing even when he heard Chad make a tiny sound of appreciation. It still wasn't down. But he couldn't stay here.

He balled up the jersey in his hands, holding it firmly in front of his crotch as he turned around and started to leave. "Um, I, um… I gotta go."

"Wait…" Chad said, but his weak plea was ignored, save that he could see Troy quicken his pace. "I… excuse me, Ms. Darbus," he muttered, following Troy out of the locker room.

As he reached the door to the outside, he saw his friend hurrying across the parking lot to his car. "Troy, wait up!"

His friend ignored him, fumbling with his keys, cursing as he tried to unlock his car with the wrong one. Chad glanced back to check that Darbus wasn't following, then moved closer to him. "Please, Troy, we need to-"

"We don't need to do anything!" Troy spun to look straight into his eyes. Chad gulped at the look he gave him- he was furious. Or maybe terrified. "What happened was…. It didn't happen." When he spoke, his voice quivered with something bordering between anger and fear, but he managed to stare steadily at the other boy. "Now, I'm going home. Goodnight."

The words were final, and Chad wouldn't know what to do even if he could stop him. He backed away from the car, watching silently as his friend got in and turned on the ignition, not stopping to glance back as he pulled out of the lot. He stared at the pavement as the light of the headlights disappeared and the parking lot dropped into an empty darkness.

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A/N: Yeah, the ending sucks. Like I said, I might write a few more chapters, and I wasn't sure where to end this one. After debating about it, I figured here was a good spot. meh.
Please tell me what you think! Read and Review if you want me to write more! :)