#mr bowen is trying his best

[rickybowensfever]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Characters: Mike Bowen, Ricky Bowen (HSMTMTS), Miss Jenn (HSMTMTS) Additional Tags: Sore throat, Sickfic, Ricky Bowen Needs A Hug (HSMTMTS), Sick Ricky Bowen, Sad Ricky Bowen (HSMTMTS), Miss Jenn/Mike Bowen, Fever Summary:

Set during season two, Ricky isn't dealing with the breakup well. As he's trying to combat a sore throat, his morning just keeps getting worse...

The water on the stove came to a boil and Ricky attempted to pour it into the thermos when it splashed all over the counter. His body was aching, his throat was burning, and he couldn’t escape the sound and pain of his head pounding.

#ricky bowen #sick!rickybowen #sick!ricky #the breakup #hsmtmts season 2 #mr bowen is trying his best #mr. bowen x miss jenn #sickfic #hsmtmts sickfics #my fics #ricky bowen hsmtmts season 2

[son-of-anubis]

Pre-payment

Billy x Brothel Worker MALE reader

Warning: prostitution, reference to other consumers that are not so nice, panic at being outed, and panic at being murdered (?), oral (because I still haven't figured out how to write actual sex without sounding stupid), some talk of saliva

A/N: It felt like people appreciated the last one so I thought I could try to write another idea i had!

Sometimes I questioned why I even stayed here. The room was filled with old fuckers just wanting something warm to help get their rocks off.

Disgraces with a false gentlemen attitude and some money to spare. The occasional woman who wanted to be treated like a princess for once.

The brothel lighting hurt my eyes and I prayed that the whiskey-blur would take away my headache. Looking around at the lightly clad women I sighed. The young men like myself rarely mingled. We got introduced as barbacks mostly. With the opinion people held on woman visiting such places, and especially men being with men it was obviously that we were a 'special request' item. 

I could hear the doors swing open once more, loud voices demanding attention. A quick glance and I could see a blond man leading the pack. 

With quick strides towards the Madam he demanded 7 of her best whores, and he sure had the funds to back it up. 

The man made eye contact with me and I tried to look away as nonchalantly as possible.

"Hey, boy! You had your fun yet?" blondie shoutet in his direction. 

Had he? Mr. Redding had been in, he is always quite gentle, in his own way. Mrs. Bowen and her friend was also in for a visit. That went fine. In my mind I suddenly remembered that Mr. Archer had mentioned his plan to join me later that evening. 

The violent shudder was impossible to contain. If I could avoid Mr. Archer I would. The pain and fear was not worth the money if I could find time somewhere else.

I was fully aware they thought me just another patron. So I carefully said: "I ain't got the money for that."

"Aye, we got some for you, todays good deed, huh? Help ya pop your cherry!" the brunette next to blondie said, laughing.

I nodded in fake glee, maybe I could score some time with Lola, give her the night off to, I knew she worked to much since her kid got sick.

"Names Jessie." so not blondie, eh. 

"Most people call me Angel." It was for the best to say, no way I was giving out my name to some outlaws.

The buggy ride wasn't to bad. Me, Lola and Caroline was chatting. They took great amusement in me 'losing my cherry' this evening. I couldn't help the chuckle leaving my mouth. Yeah, it was pretty funny.

The 3 men up front started hollering, being met with equal enthusiasm somewhere in the near distance. 

As the wagon stopped, a group of maybe 12 men came into view, all dripping in machismo. Fucking losers if you asked me. 

My gaze stopped as ice blue eyes met mine. The shaggy brown hair under a worn and torn hat. He was absolutely beautiful....and probably would spend the night with one of the women. The reminder was not a fun one, but it was the way of life.

Caroline launched herself at the nearest outlaw and the others followed suit. I made my way at the back of the group, walking over to the open fire. 

I nodded at the people going into the cabin before departing, making sure they where okay with the current arrangement, but it was good money so I knew noone was actually going to protest.

The evening air was sticky and I grabbed the cup closes to me. Moonshine. That would do.

The giggling and moaning started soon after, but at this point in my life it was basically white noise.

They vague sound of footsteps approached, stopping next to me. As I cast a glace upwards I was met with blue. An involuntary shiver fell down my back. God he was gorgeous. 

"May I?" he asked, the drawl wasn't as worn in as most, he probably was not born in the west. 

I gestured to the rickedy chair next to me. 

"What's your name, sugar?" maybe the nickname was over the line, but half the excitement had always been toying between making men uncomfortable and getting beaten up.

The man lifted an eybrow but still answered.

"William Bonney, but you can call me Billy if you want." Billy tilted his head slightly, sizing me up, see if I was a threat. I really wasn't, and had never been, else I would never have gotten into this profession. "And what might yours be?"

The intense sensation of wanting to tell him my real name washed over me. Damn his hotness, I was always a sucker, metaphorically and literally, for charming people. 

"....people call me Angel." Oh shit, that hesitation could be heard a mile away. 

Billy looked at me, more like stared at me, for what felt like forever.

"You a.....worker?"

How the fuck did he spot that. Noone ever did, why the fuck did he? And why would he ask? I am dead. 

The panic in my chest hurt and I tried to keep my breathing even. 

Billy looked at me, expecting an answer and for some reason, I blame panic, I nodded. My eyes darted around wildly, I was going to die, and in the middle of nowhere. I was going to be murdered by Billy the fucking Kid. Oh fuck.

A hand lands on my shoulder and my eyes meet with Billys. He looked, concerned? Why?

"m'not telling anyone." he said, the cadence somthing you would use to calm a feral dog. 

He started rubbing my shoulder, and I found myself trying to match my breathing to his. 

The moments passed slowly, with me calming down at snail pace. The universe seemed aligned as we somehow gravitated towards each other, inching closer and closer until Billy had his arm around my shoulder. 

I looked up at him, sapphire piercing my soul. Time stopped as I leaned in, and with uncertainty and slight hesitance Billy did the same.

----------------------------------------

My back hit the cold wood of the shed as Billys tounges invaded my mouth. In our drunken stupor the saliva seemed abundant but neither of us minded the messiness. 

Billys hand found the back och my thigh, urging me to jump. He caught me effortlessly, wrapping my legs around his waist. As we pulled away for a breath a string of saliva briefly connected us.

"$10 for the hour, $25 for the night." i recited. I would be stupid to think this was anything other than a transactional affair, even if it without a doubt would be a hell of a lot better than Mr. Archer would have been.

Billy scoffed but dug out what looked like $50 from his pants.

He must have seen the confusion on my face as he flashed a quick grin.

"Pre payment, if you're good for it, 'cause next time I see you, I ain't keeping off ya."

My entire body heated up as Billy carried me over to some hay. He used his foot to kick some type of old fabric over it and unceromoniously threw me on it.

Quickly undressing without breaking eye contact and my eyes wandered the outlaws figure. He was lean and lanky, but also very obviously strong.

And as our clothing was completely gone my eyes traveled further down. Fuck. Ain't no way that beauty of a cock was fitting without some grease, and as far as I were aware, we had none. But never the less, the heat and spark of arousal fuled me even more.

When my eyes once again landed on his face it looked almost bashful, like he didn't know what to do with himself. It was a stark contrast to the overt confidence he had just minutes ago. 

I made the decision to initiate further and crawled my way over to him. Grabbing him softly, feeling him pulse in my hand, I gave his dick a experimentative lick from base to tip. I heard Billy draw in a sharp breath and as we locked eyes I put his tip in my mouth. 

I licked up the pre cum that landed on my tounge and swirled it around a bit. 

Hollowing my cheeks I plunged down, taking as much as possible of him. 

The bobbing started slow but quicked as we got comfortable. 

His hand slowly crept into my hair, giving an almost shy push, and I tried to take even more of his leangth. The gagging happened almost immediately.

"Ain't have to do it, ya know." Billy spoke in a gruff tone, sounding out of breath. 

I rolled my eyes before pulling out some, deep inhale, eyes closing, and finally slow dip. More, more, more. The gagging was easy enough to control. Before I knew it my nose hit a fuzzy patch. I looked up at Billy, tears streaming down my face, and was met with a man at the brink of insanity. 

Billys eyes held a haze that would disgust me if it was any other patron, but at this very moment I felt nothing but pride. I did that. If I could smile I would.

I felt the first small thrust and had to once again close my eyes to control the gag. But I still managed to give him a somewhat nod, consenting for further exploration. 

The thrusting started almost lazy, but quickly picked up. Billy using my hair as make shift reigns. The curses that left the mans mouth was foul but sounded oh so heavenly. In the mids of it all I heard "Angel" and tapped his thighs. Billy let me up with a shocked expression.

"Did I hurt ya? Didn't mean t......"

"Y/N." I interupted. The confusion grew on Billys face, still looking down on me on my knees, still with a hand in my hair. I pulled myself closer to his cock again, mouth open and ready as I expressed:

"My name, it's Y/N, call me that, please." 

I didn't care how desperate it sounded, I wanted him to praise my name the way it was supposed to be. Y/N the man, not Angel the whore.

Billy seemed taken aback for only a second before growling my name and pushing me back down on him. 

The pace seemed impossibly faster but the atmosphere was also much more intimate. I knew he was nearing the end and I started to periodically tighten my throat as much as I could. 

As I felt Billy start to pull away I buried my face in his pubic hair, clutching the back of his thighs. 

I felt his cum sliding down my throat, warm and smooth. Billy sinfully moaning above me. This was as perfect as a night could get, I was sure of it.

Pulling away, Billys knees buckled slightly, and I grinned up at him. 

He slowly sat down on the floor of the shed, coming down from his high. 

His hand made a vague gesture towards me and I shook my head.

"You're not gonna put that in me without any help," we shared a chuckle "but maybe you could put your mouth on mine again, cowboy?" 

Billy embraced me once again as we fell back onto the hay, but this time the kiss was much more controlled. 

"Once I'm ready for round 2, you're gonna forget everything that ain't my name, that good for you Y/N?" the teasingly cocky tone made me laugh, but I agreed anyway.

Definitely better than Mr. Archer.

#billy x reader #billy the kid x reader #billy bonney x reader #william h bonney x reader #tom blyth x reader #male reader #coriolanus snow x reader #billy antrim x reader

[jimblejamblewritings]

luck be a (leading) lady | part 14.

[Posted 2023.08.12]

Summary: Y/N has always been a background character. That’s just life for some folks isn’t it? But what if she’s determined to not just be another member in the ensemble? What if someone helps her step into the spotlight in her own special way?

Warnings for the Series: a teeny bit of angst but mainly fluff

Pairing: ricky bowen x black!reader

Word Count: 3.0k

Previous Part | (Series Masterlist) 

Despite the documentary trailer coming out, the general public didn’t believe you and Ricky were together. According to everyone, the whole show was an act. A very entertaining act but an act nonetheless. Not that you or Ricky minded. With the increase in auditions and booking small roles, you wanted your personal life to stay personal for just a little longer. You told Gina that much as you helped her finish packing.

Her mom was back into so your roommate turned sister was officially leaving your house. Gina dragged her entire closet into your room so you two could pack up and watch a movie on the projector screen in your room.

“I can’t believe your moving. Seriously,” you said as you shoved her jackets into a box.

“You act like I’m leaving the state, I’m literally across the street.”

“Yeah, I can’t believe that old couple finally chose to live in a nursing home.”

You and Gina paused before you bursted out in laughter. It was really nice to have her stay near by. While you were friends with the rest of the drama club, Gina and Ricky were still your only close friends at East High.

“You know what I can’t believe,” Gina started. “That two of my best friends are leaving me next year.”

“Senior year. I still haven’t processed it yet,” you admitted.

A knock on the door caught your attention. Your dad was standing in the doorway with a plate of fruit. “My lovely senior and junior…”

You and Gina rolled your eyes.

“Gina, your mother wants me to remind you that she’d like you home by ten thirty and that you two can talk tomorrow at school.”

“Got it.”

“Thank you, here you guys go. Let’s try to finish packing before the night is over.”

“If you really want us to finish. Dad, you could he—”

The sound of your window opening made you all turn. You laughed as Ricky practically fell into your room. He jumped up with a quickness.

“Hi, Mr. L/N. Y/N, Gina.”

“Hello, Richard. You do know we have a front door, right?” you father pointed to downstairs.

“Yeah but since you guys said I’m allowed over any time, it’s not as much fun unless I’m going through the window.”

Your dad looked up at the ceiling. “I have clearly overstayed my welcome talking to a bunch of teenagers. Okay, Gina, home by ten thirty. Richard no sleeping in Y/N’s room but you are welcome to take any other room upstairs. Bed time is eleven, no negotiations. School’s tomorrow… I can’t believe my baby is a senior.”

“Dad, Dad, there’s plenty of time before I graduate. We don’t need to start crying now.”

“Oh, whatever.”

You chuckled as your dad left the room before focusing on Ricky again. He had no problem showing affection towards you with Gina in the room because she was the only person that knew you and Ricky were a real couple. She wasn’t exactly sure how she felt about being sworn to secrecy no matter the reason but she was still just happy to be let in.

Your boyfriend sat on the bed, actually helping you pack up Gina’s closet. “I wanted to give you something but I couldn’t really wait until tomorrow. Well, both of you, kind of.”

“What is it?”

“So, I’ve had this melody stuck in my head all day and it reminded me of Y/N.”

“Sap,” Gina muttered.

“I think it’s sweet.” You leaned over to give him a peck.

“Anyway, I know you don’t really write songs but you have an ear for music Y/N and Gina does write lyrics so I thought maybe we could work on this together?”

“Of course.”

“Okay.” Ricky stood up to leave. “I actually do have to get home. One of Dad’s only rules is bed by ten on the first day of school.”

“Seriously?”

He nodded. “Yep, it’s been a tradition since I started… and it is nine thirty so I do need to go.”

You gave him another kiss. “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow… Oh! Did Lucille send you the filming schedule?”

“Yeah, I’m just glad the filming is here. Senior year away from East High would’ve been such a bummer.”

“I know right. Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

~~

You leaned against Ashylnn’s locker, chuckling as you watched Kourtney and Carlos take pictures with fans. It was weird to say you guys had fans.

“So what do you think, Y/N?”

“Hmm?” You focused back on Gina and Ashlynn.

“About Ash and Maddie giving each other relationship advice.”

You and Gina shared a look before you stood up straight. “I think that’s for Ashlynn to figure out but we need to figure out how to get to the drama club before we’re late for Ms. Jenn’s big announcement.”

Ashlynn’s eyebrows furrowed. “For me to figure out what?”

“Nothing,” you said with a laugh before grabbing her and Gina’s hands and leading them to the drama club.

You guys weren’t sure why Ms. Jenn called everyone in for a “surprise.” It was pretty obvious that the next play was going to be High School Musical 3. Without stupid Zacky Roy around to throw the Drama Club off their game, you guys were going right back to doing Disney TV shows for musicals. You just hoped that next semester you guys did Teen Beach Movie before you graduated.

You felt Ricky squeeze your hand once before you guys broke apart and left the drama room with everyone else to go to the Pep Rally. Staying lowkey was going to be so hard. You let Ashlynn and Gina walk in between the two of you on your way to the field.

“Can you believe auditions are this Friday? I need to pick a song,” Ashlynn said as she started searching through a list written down on her phone.

“What part are you going for Ash?”

“I’m thinking Kelsey or Sharpay. You?”

You shrugged. “Whatever doesn’t interfere with filming and my calculus homework. You know I’ve been demoted at Saltwater.”

“What?!”

You chuckled at your friends’ expressions. “Not like that. Bennet agreed that Principal dancer is too much to handle with school and filming so I’m only principal for the fall ballet since we’ve been rehearsing it before filming next month and then I’m just a first soloist for the rest of the time. It’s better this way anyway. This is the exact arrangement I’m going to having at Berklee. I’m thankful to get but my academic advisor sends me an email like every other day with updates. My inbox is dying.”

You guys sat down in your seats, finally moving to be next to Ricky.

“That still means we get to come watch you perform at Saltwater, right?”

“Yeah, you are looking at Coraline Jones in our fall production.”

Before your friends could celebrate you, the pep rally started much to your relief. You were still getting used to being the center of attention without losing the ability to breathe. Part of the reason you weren’t so prepared to be the lead in a feature film. A small film but still… The first Twilight movie was an indie film.

At least you didn’t have time to overanalyze that because the dude who played Coach Bolton was at the pep rally? You and Ricky rolled your eyes and sighed at the same time with the announcement of High School Musical 4 being filmed at your school. Just why?

Of course all the students were cheering no matter what, hoping that filming would mess with classes a little. You had a little fangirl moment when they announced one of the new stars of High School Musical 4. Mack and Dani.

Kourtney played Dani’s TikToks over and over again when you guys were at camp. Hopefully she could act because her TikToks seemed so nice. And Mack? Well you couldn’t help but squeal a little when they announced him.

Your friends looked at you causing you to laugh. “You don’t understand, I had one of the biggest crushes on him when I was little.”

“Me too!” Gina said with excitement. “Mark and Spark was my comfort show.”

“You know, he was supposed to be the first male lead in the movie I’m filming and my heart stopped until he cancelled of course.”

“Well now we know why,” Ashlynn said before focusing back on the stage.

You leaned your head on Ricky’s shoulder, having felt him tense up behind you. He relaxed when you grabbed his hand for a brief moment.

“You know I don’t mean anything by it. It was just a stupid celebrity crush,” you whispered.

“Celebrity crushes are still crushes.”

“Well then it was a stupid little crush. Is that better?”

“Yeah,” Ricky said with a squeeze of your hand.

You made a note to stay at Ricky's for a late dinner later after ballet rehearsal just to make sure he wasn’t still jealous. This relationship really was new territory for the both of you. But that would have to wait because now it was time for a second surprise in the drama room. You were getting real sick of surprises. And super sick of the security guard trying to block access to the drama room because of “filming”.

“Ahh!”

You all turned at Kourtney’s scream.

“Corbin Bleu?”

“Oh great,” Ricky muttered.

“Okay, okay. I deserve that a bit. But I am here to make amends. I know that documentary wasn’t what any of us expected.”

“Seb isn’t talking to me.” Carlos pointed out.

Ashlynn nodded along with him. “Yeah and Big Red is in Cairo for six months.”

“I hear you but we’ve found a way to make it up to you.”

“Uh, who’s we?” you asked with a raised hand.

You heard footsteps before you saw the people attached to the noise. You couldn’t believe it. Standing right in front of you was the original cast of High School Musical. Honestly, Corbin might have actually gotten you guys the best apology gift ever.

Featured extras in High School Musical 4? That was sick! So was everyone character development. You had to admit that you didn’t see Troy and Gabriella being in couples’ therapy… because you thought they would’ve broken up freshman year of college since they were such an on and off again relationship. The entire class was giggling uncontrollably at the prospects of being together on set.

Kourtney raised her hand. “Well, if the movie is going for authenticity casting a drama class to play Ms. Darbus’ drama class then Mack and Dani should consult us. The real life kids of East High.”

“This is why she’s the smart one,” someone said as you all high-fived.

Apparently, the OG cast thought she was brilliant as well because it didn’t take them any convincing. She was immediately assigned to Dani. You playfully shook her shoulders to let her know you were proud of her.

“Do we have any volunteers for Mack?” Lucas asked.

“Right like someone who grew up loving his tv show. Or two someones?”

You tried to back out of being Mack’s guide but it was too late. You were stuck co-guiding with Gina. All you wanted to do was focus on movie rehearsals, ballet rehearsals, your relationship, school, and drama club. That was a lot of things. Guiding Mack was not on your list of things.

You acted like that wasn’t the case when you went to go see the superstar, putting on your best smile. Your eyes went wide at an almost naked man getting his calf measured.

“Oh my,” you and Gina said at the same time.

Mack looked over. “Can I help you?”

You let Gina take over as you tried to look everywhere but at Mack, feeling embarrassed and more awkward than usual.

“We are so sorry. We are real students here, only one credit on IMDb so far but anyway, we were assigned to give you a hand.”

“Yeah, I’d love to know who assigned you to interrupt my costume fitting.”

“No. That was our bad.”

“Yeah,” you offered up. “If we had known you weren’t dressed we would’ve come way sooner before school ended… Soo-sooner because you’d have clothes on. Not whatever you l-look like you, like you’re thinking of. Oh my goodness.”

“Would you mind turning around?”

You and Gina looked at each other before doing just that. “That was probably the first thing we should have done.”

“Okay. So, I do have to ask,” Gina started. “Do you still keep in touch with the dog from the show?”

“There were seven of them and they all retired to a farm upstate.”

“Oh that’s so swee—”

“Uh, G,” you cut her off. “That means they aren’t, um, currently pr—”

“It means they’re dead.” Mack had put on a shirt so you guys could turn around. “The farm is heaven.”

“Well that ruined everything,” your friend muttered. “Okay, we’re going to leave now and we can all pretend we never met.”

“Oh, I’m way ahead of you.”

“Good luck on the movie, Mack. Hope you break a leg, literally.”

“Good luck with your lives, superfans.”

You felt your face get hot as you marched up to him. “Her name is Gina Porter and can I just say, I’m so glad High School Musical 4 took you in. Acting alongside you in Sweet Pea Americano would have literally killed me… G-Gina, why did I just say that?”

“I’m proud of you.” She swung her arm over your shoulder so you guys could leave. “Even with anxiety, you always stick up for your friends.”

“I think I’m going to pass out.”

“Come on, let’s go see if Ricky got a smoothie for us at the food truck.”

While you were mortified at your actions, Gina proudly recanted the entire story to Ricky who echoed her sentiments. You guys went you separate ways. There was no carpool with Gina today. Carlos called her over for an emergency meeting of the Finer Things Club at Kourtney’s house, leaving Ricky to drop you off at Saltwater. You guys stopped at a salad bar first so you could get some real food into your system.

“Oh, Gina finished the lyrics to the song.”

“Already?”

“You know her. Once she gets started on a mission, she can’t stop until it’s complete. Do you want to hear it?”

“Of course, do you have the lyrics on you?”

You handed Ricky your phone to look at the screenshots of Gina’s song journal. Your harmonies were rough and sometimes the melody fell off but the two of you had fun singing all the way back to the car.

“Are you sure you don’t mind picking me up?” you asked him as you leaned into the driver’s side window after getting your bags from the back of the car once you guys reached your destination. “Because we don’t get out till eleven and Mrs. Porter said it was fine for her to pick me up since Saltwater is between Kourtney’s house and ours.”

“It’s fine, baby, I like picking you up.”

“Okay. Oh, don’t forget. Gina’s driving tomorrow morning.”

“I can’t believe she got a car.”

“I can’t believe she got a license.”

You said bye one last time and headed inside for you ballet rehearsals. While you were dancing, Ricky was doing homework, and Gina was laughing as she got into Kourtney’s room. Ashlynn and Carlos were already there and Kourtney… well, she was meditating at the edge of her bed. While, Ashlynn had nearly forty missed texts from Maddox. Gina so had to tell you about that when you and Ricky came over for breakfast tomorrow morning.

Her smile faded at the announcement that Kourtney wasn’t sure about doing the school musical or not. She wasn’t sure if Dani was the best thing for Kourtney. She especially wasn’t sure when her friend suddenly became supper eager and chipper to answer her phone call. Kourtney put Dani on speaker after the others swore to be quiet.

“Hi, so I was studying you. Not in a creepy way but I’m really trying to get into character as a real East High drama student.”

Gina made a face when Dani suddenly stopped the speak pretty harshly to the driver taking her to the airport.

“Anyway, you’ve got that X factor, Kourt, and I want to help you grow your footprint. But I’ve been looking through your post and to be honest I’ve noticed something.”

“It’s the honesty for me,” Kourtney said with a nervous lilt to her voice.

“If I’m going to show you exactly what it’s like to grow an audience and you’re going to do the same for me as an East High student, I want you to tell me everything you know about Ricky Bowen.”

Gina bit her tongue as her other three friends stared at each other with suspicious looks on their faces. She got strange vibes for some reason but didn’t want to act on what could be nothing. Besides, she promised you two that she wouldn’t say anything to anyone. And how could she tell Kourtney not to mention Ricky to Dani if she didn’t ended up revealing something?

~~

You looked down at your phone to see a text from Ricky.

I’m still on my way, baby. Don’t worry, I’m stopped at a red light. I’ll be there in like 10 minutes. I wish your rehearsal didn’t end so late so we could’ve stayed up cuddling.

You smiled at the text before sending a little heart emoji, nothing that would require Ricky to look down at his phone after the light turned green. You ruffled around your bag to get your water bottle, reaching for your phone again when you felt the familiar vibration of a text. Another one from Ricky.

This red light is long. Do you want to get McDonalds after this?

You shook your head, deciding it was better to just answer him in person. A groan left you mouth when you felt the vibration again. That light wasn’t going to be red forever, if he was texting while driving then you were going to scold him because that could seriously inju—

Why was Mack now following your Instagram?

(part 15)

THIS FIC TAGLIST:

@mishtay​ @ifilwtmfc ​​ @moonysgal

PERMANENT TAGLIST:

@venomsvl @peaches-n-sunscreen @summerellaz @supernaturallover2002 @sambucky8 @9daykrisr @thebitchinleo @23victoria @scarlets-widow @pagetpagetpagetpaget @lovexnatasha @awesomebooklover17 @1234-angelika @imatrisk @blackreaderatrisk @princess-jules47 @alexloveskili @a-marie-a @siriuslysirius1107 @bubybubsters

#ricky bowen x reader #hsmtmts fic #hsmtmts

[mellowmadds]

When you take a chance | Ricky Bowen

ricky bowen/fem!reader oneshot

fluff :)

summary: the musical has been casted and the cast list has been posted however when miss Jenn is in search for pianist Ricky Bowen your childhood best friend and secret crush insists that you push your fears aside and join the wildcats with putting on a musical.

warnings: mentions of divorce, sad ricky

word count: 3064

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

“You do realize that auditioning for the musical means breaking out into song and dance in front of the entire school, right?” You laughed, while sitting down in between your two best friends Big Red and Ricky.

“Except this is my one chance to win back Nini, I need to prove to her that I’m serious about our relationship.” Ricky sighed as he turned his head towards the one thing he’s been avoiding all day.

“Why don’t you just try talking to her?” Big Red said while gesturing over towards the two lovebirds Ej Caswell and the one girl Ricky could confide in.

“No offense but the one person I go to for advice is currently on her honeymoon in the cafeteria.” Ricky pushed the rest of his lunch towards Big Red while grabbing his skateboard and storming off.

“At least I get the rest of his fries.” Big Red said before chugging down the rest of his soda.

You gave Big Red a small smile and handed him the rest of your chips. While getting up from the table and gathering your belongings out of the corner of your eye you see Kourtney staring back and forth between you and Nini. You were never really jealous of Ricky’s relationship with Nini because at least before she went off to camp they were oddly the perfect couple. You would never admit the feelings you had towards Ricky to anyone except maybe Big Red but only because he was becoming suspicious as to why you always agreed to everything Ricky had said or done.

The rest of the day seemed to pass by. You walked down the familiar hallway to your locker to grab things for the after school club your parents forced you to participate in. While walking back down towards the classroom you heard faint yelling coming from Mr. Mazzara’s room which you ultimately ignored thinking it was just the robotics team arguing over who gets to control the remote. But the last thing you expected to see was Ricky Bowen bolting past you towards the theater.

“He’s really going to audition.” You said to yourself shocked. Not wanting to be distracted by the thought of Ricky trying to impress Nini you continued to walk to the classroom you should have already been at ten minutes ago.

Instead of actually paying any attention to the club you signed up for, you found yourself reading over your music sheets so you could practice the new song you were learning on the piano when you got home.

Wanting to go home a bit earlier than the actual time your after school club ended you made up an excuse and started gathering everything into your already heavy backpack. While walking out of the classroom you couldn’t help but be distracted by the commotion coming from down the hall.

“What’s going on?” You asked approaching Big Red as he stood there with nothing but a shocked expression on his face.

“Your crush, our best friend just scored the lead in the play with no acting experience whatsoever.” Big Red announced to you with the biggest smile you’ve ever seen on him.

“Okay first of all lower your voice, second of all how?” You questioned while laughing. Walking over to the cast list taped to the wall you see Ricky Bowen written in all caps playing Troy Bolton. While you were incredibly happy for him below his name was Nini’s also in all caps playing Gabriella.

You congratulated Ricky and gave a small smile to Nini seeing that she was obviously frustrated with the whole situation. You couldn’t blame her though she seems happy being in a relationship with Ej and doesn’t want anything or certainly anyone ruining it for her.

It’s been a few days since Miss Jenn posted the cast list and since then Ricky has been practicing non stop. On the other hand Big Red had gotten stuck reading stage directions for Miss Jenn. Having both of your best friends being so busy spending time with the drama club meant that you had way too much time on your hands which led to feeling a bit lonely.

Instead of heading home for the day you thought it would be nice to sit in the music room and play the piano for a little while. Feeling lonely at school felt a little less lonely than sitting all alone at home, if that made any sense.

“Hey Y/n.” Of course the one boy you’ve purposely been avoiding wants to interrupt your peaceful piano playing. Instead of saying some sarcastic comeback to him you look up from the piano keys to see that instead of his normally happy go lucky smile he was upset.

“What’s wrong Ricky?” he gently sat down beside you on the piano bench without making any eye contact. Instead of forcing him to talk you turned back to the piano keys and started playing little soft tunes instead of having to sit there in silence. You knew he’d been having a hard time at home due to his mother leaving his dad and moving away to Chicago.

“Nina is in love with Ej.” he admits out of the blue while nervously tracing his finger along the keys of the piano.

You stopped playing for a second to collect your thoughts. You have never actually heard him call her Nina. It was like he was speaking a foreign language. You wanted to comfort him and tell him that everything would be okay but you were at a loss of words and when you tried to speak nothing came out.

“But I’m okay with that, it hurt at first watching her fall in love with Ej but she’s happy and I don’t want to ruin that for her.” Ricky spoke in a soft tone almost as if he had lost his voice. Before you could speak he cut you off again.

“At first I auditioned so I could show her that I was serious about our relationship and maybe that was a stupid move but now I realized that a part of me also did this for myself.” You smiled to yourself knowing that Ricky finally found something he’s passionate about.

“So why are you sitting here with me right now instead of up on that stage practicing?” You asked while turning to face him. He pressed his fingers down on the piano and started playing random keys, which sounded awful together.

“Because Miss Jenn doesn’t have anyone to play piano for us, Ashlyn is focused on making sure Ms. Darbus’s solo is perfect.” Secretly hoping he isn’t about to ask you to play piano in front of everyone you start putting your music sheets into your folder and shoving it quickly into your backpack.

“Y/n can you please play the piano for us just for rehearsal?” Already preparing to say no you look down at your shoes.

“Ricky-”

“Please Y/n, just this one time?” He’s not going to stop until you agree to play.

“I know you know the songs you used to watch high school musical on repeat.” Ricky continued to ask you to play the piano. Feeling bad you finally give in and say yes even though deep down you really don’t want to do this.

Following closely behind Ricky down the hallway towards the theater was the last thing you thought you’d ever be doing today. You had secretly been wishing in your head that you had gone home right after school today.

“You okay Y/n?” Ricky stopped walking and turned to face you.

“Yeah I’m alright, just nervous.” You tried giving him a smile but he could tell you were really anxious about playing the piano in front of anyone that wasn’t him or Big Red.

“We can practice alone first in front of Miss Jenn, I’m sure everyone else is busy doing something.” Ricky spoke in a soft loving tone to try and calm your nerves. You only gave him a forced smile as you continued walking towards the theater.

As you both stepped foot in the theater Ricky called out for Miss Jenn just for her to randomly pop out from around the corner.

“Ricky you're finally back” Miss Jenn said while clapping her hands together.

“I found someone to play the piano for us, but is it cool if we could just practice in front of you for now? She’s a bit nervous.” Ricky asked only to receive a nod from Miss Jenn.

“Yes of course we could do that. What is your name sweetheart?” Miss Jenn asked, approaching you with a hug.

“Y/n” You said quietly and accepted her hug. She waved and motioned for the two of you to follow her.

As she brought you guys over to the piano you could start to feel your heart race until you felt a familiar hand start tracing circles on your back. You tried your best to keep your composure but to actually be this close to Ricky in the moment it just felt right. But you knew he didn’t feel the same way you did, not after just recently getting over Nini.

“Here’s the sheet music for ‘Start of Something New’ don’t be nervous there's no judging here. This is a safe space sweetheart.” Miss Jenn told you.

You set the papers down in front of you quickly looking over the notes and preparing yourself. You felt Ricky sit down next to you and quickly put his hand back on your lower back. As you started playing the song Ricky quickly started singing.

‘Livin’ in my own world’

‘Didn’t understand’

‘That anything can happen’

‘When you take a chance’

You continued playing the song until it eventually came to an end. You could feel Ricky staring at you but interrupting the sweet moment Miss Jenn applauded the two of you.

“Have you ever thought about being in a musical sweetheart? Because you have the talent for it.” Miss Jenn stated while grinning ear to ear.

“Oh, no I don’t really sing or dance or act for a matter of fact.” You said nervously just wanting this conversation to end right at that very moment.

“How would you feel about playing Kelsi? We need someone as talented as you are to go on for her and play the piano.” As much as you wanted to say no the expression on Ricky’s face wouldn’t allow you to.

They both stared at you for what felt like hours you had no choice other than to say yes. You also didn’t want to crush Ricky’s heart by saying no. And it seemed like Miss Jenn really needs your help with this.

“Sure I’ll play Kelsi and help out at rehearsals with the piano.” You said quietly almost instantly regretting what you had just said.

You turned back around to face Ricky and were greeted with the biggest hug he’s ever given you. Not wanting to interrupt the moment Miss Jenn walked out to the rest of the theater kids to make sure they were doing what they were supposed to be doing.

“I’m so proud of you!” Ricky yelled while you shushed him.

“No really I am Y/n, you just faced one of your biggest fears and now you’re in the musical with me.” You couldn’t help but think now all the time you’re going to have to spend with Ricky playing the piano. The thought of getting to spend time with the person that I love while doing the thing I love the most made you instantly feel butterflies.

“Thank you for pushing me Ricky. Now let’s hope I can handle it and not get stage fright.” You said as you turned back to the piano to gather all of the sheet music for the songs you now need to learn and practice.

You introduced yourself to the rest of the drama club minus the people who already knew who you were due to your friendships with Big Red and Ricky. Everyone welcomed you with open arms and you couldn’t have felt more comfortable around any group of people before. After many rehearsals you had made many new friends and eventually grew even closer to Ricky.

You’ve been practicing all of the songs that Kelsi performs during the musical. Your parents are incredibly proud of you for coming out of your shell and finally showing your talent off. You have no distractions getting in your way except for one, Ricky Bowen.

Big Red continued to tease you about your crush on Ricky every single day insisting on the fact that he feels the same way. You didn’t want to risk your friendship with Ricky just in case it didn’t work out between the two of you. Ricky’s past relationship with Nini is a big part in making you afraid over nothing. Even though he and Nini were total opposites they just were a perfect couple but despite everything they didn’t work out in the end and they barely talk to each other anymore. That is what you were afraid of, losing him.

Many weeks had gone by with a lot of things all happening at once. Ricky would compliment you here and there and maybe you two would share a moment every once and a while but you always just brushed it off and thought of it as him just being a good friend.

It was finally opening night, the night everyone had been working so hard for. Despite the anxiety building up inside of you you knew you couldn’t quit or give up now it was too late for that. So instead you went to find the one person you trust only to find out that Ej had gone on for him during act two and nobody could find Ricky. You knew you couldn’t run around and look for him knowing you had scenes in the musical with nobody to go on for you. As you took a deep breath you walked over to the piano to start playing ‘Breaking Free’. In your head you knew Ricky should be here on stage singing not Ej you couldn’t help but wonder where he was.

After the musical was over and everyone exited the stage you approached Ej to confront him about Ricky.

“He wanted me to go on for him Y/n. I don’t know what happened but he insisted that I would go on as Troy.” Ej explained to you. You knew Ej wouldn’t lie to you as everyone had grown a close bond over these past couple of weeks.

Carlos and Seb walked and noticed how upset you were.

“He’s in the rehearsal room Y/n” Carlos spoke with a gentle tone. You thanked them and walked down to the rehearsal room.

You quietly opened the door and shut it behind you.

“Ricky, What's going on? What happened?” You asked while taking a seat next to him. He didn’t say a word all he did was pull you closer into a hug and quietly sobbed. You've never seen Ricky cry but you knew instead of questioning him you needed to comfort him. As much as you tried to put your feelings aside for just a moment you couldn’t help but think about the way he held onto you but that didn’t last long as he stood up and started apologizing for seeming weak and crying in front of you.

“You don’t have to apologize for crying Ricky, it’s okay” You said as you stood up and walked closer towards him.

“My mom brought her boyfriend here and when I saw him put his arm around her I didn’t know how to feel. Why would she think it’s okay to bring him around? I thought that this would be an opportunity for her to talk with my dad.” Ricky said while holding back his tears because he didn’t want to cry in front of you again.

“You know it’s okay to feel that way and it’s okay to cry. You’re allowed to be mad at your mother. She should have asked if it was okay to bring him.” You said as you tried your best to be strong for him.

“She said she wanted me to meet him” Ricky repeated what his mother had previously said to him as he looked down at his shoes.

“But you should be the one to decide when you want to meet him, not her. She should have asked for your permission to bring him. She’s the one who messed up, not you Ricky.” You said as you crossed your arms hoping that he would agree with you.

“This is why I love you.” Ricky admitted looking back up at you. Taken back a bit you were once again at a loss of words in front of Ricky Bowen.

“It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way, but I love you Y/n.” He said once again. Not wanting to mess this moment up you walked over to him and pulled him into a tight hug.

“I love you too, Ricky.”

As you looked back up to him he smiled down at you. His hand gently gripped your chin as he leaned in but before doing anything he asked.

“Can I kiss you?” and without even having to think for a second you replied with a yes.

He gently pressed his soft lips against yours and you instantly felt the feeling of butterflies all over again. You placed your hand on his cheek as you slowly rubbed your thumb against it as you pulled away from him.

“If you want you can stay with me tonight, so you don’t have to be at home.” You said trying your best not to kill the mood but you wanted to make sure he had a place to sleep in case he didn’t want to face his mom tonight.

“Thank you Y/n, I appreciate it so much.” He replied back pulling you into a tight hug. Not ever wanting to pull away you laughed and said

“Come on we're going to be late to slices, don’t want Big Red getting suspicious of anything.” You said as he grabbed your hand and walked outside to join the rest of the wildcats for a well deserved after party at slices.

#ricky bowen #Ricky bowen/reader #Ricky bowen imagine #ricky bowen x reader #hsmtmts #joshua bassett #Joshua basset imagine #Joshua basset/reader #Joshua bassett x reader #hsmtmtsimagine #Oneshot #high school musical the musical the series #high school musical the series #Ricky bowen y/n #hsmtmts season 3 #imagine #fanfic #fanfiction #disney+ #Joshua bassett y/n #olivia rodrigo

[fbfh]

rocks at your window pt. 10 - ricky bowen x reader

disclaimer: this series contains smut and chapter by chapter warnings, so as with all nsfw works, ricky is aged up to 18+!! ricky and reader are 18 and in their senior year

additionally, we're working towards a ricky x therapy plot so he's going to start expressing some symptoms of mental illness and bpd but he does get therapy eventually and has a good support system but he gets worse before he gets better yk. Obviously I'm not a professional and this is for entertainment so while I have done my research pls take this with a grain of salt!! or several!! /lh

!! contains some spoilers for season 1 of hsmtmts, and previous chapters of this fic !!

wc: 10.1k

genre: angst, hurt/comfort, more high highs and a lot of low lows, tooth rotting fluff

pairing: ricky bowen x (afab she/her) reader

warnings: saucy flashbacks, nini and ej are very unprofessional, more fake texts, more coping through the arts, ricky realizes he's a real theatre kid, ricky is simping for you, seb being seb/a good friend/an absolute sweetheart, ricky distancing himself from lynne (slay), spilling tea (after getting permission to do so), conflicted feelings, nini (and ej but mostly nini) ruins the show, three seperate nini pick me moments, reader is about to snap, ricky and reader are mvps, one playful 'babe' from reader to ricky, nini is one delusional bitch!, brief mention of reader's trauma (jumpy at loud noises, flinches when someone raises their voice), ricky and big red are bros, big red has good opinions bc he stans dr phil, minor big red x ashlyn, kourtney and ricky do not get along lol, reader DOES snap, nini is terrible idk how else to rephrase it she's just the worst, nini gets yelled at by both you and ricky (slay), realizations happen, jones BIGASS love confessions and neck kisses.html, flowery descriptions, ricky picks you up briefly, making out, ricky is good with kids and it's adorable, nini is the only one who calls it YAC, theatre kids at denny's jumpscare, mike is a good dad, you wear one of ricky's shirts, saccrine amounts of love declarations, tooth rotting fluff

summary: after the disaster that was act one, act two also finds some way to go unplanned, causing you to be completely fed up with Nini's unprofessional behavior. you turn a night of confrontations around as you realize something and ricky finally gets something important off his chest.

song recs: entr'acte (hands clean) - jagged little pill obc, smiling - jagged little pill obc, what am I to you - rm, you stupid bitch - crazy ex girlfriend cast, first - niki and gabi, for a pessimist, I'm pretty optimistic - paramore, I hear a symphony - cody fry, something to believe in - newsies obc, let's go to the movies - annie (1982), sunrise - in the heights obc

a/n: fangz again 2 cici for beta reading, prepz fuk off. I'm watching american horror story murder house so uh. i'll let you know how that goes. it's hilarious so far tbh i love basement babyman. also this is ricky at you

tags @yesv01 @afidiofobia @aliyahsutherland @hopefullhearts @pikzel @demirunner @brinaslittlefreak @girlfriendwhoseawitch @matiere-detoiles @ifilwtmfc @uselesssapphickitten @nxstalgicnxbxdy @ggclarissa @n-slayaaaaa @stormi-ames @thatawkwardlittlefangirl @rainforest-daisies @sunshineangel-reads

You had heard the first part of their argument from your dressing room. After that it was muffled yelling - most of which you hoped was Ricky’s. When Natalie called for places, they were still going at it. You found Miss Jenn as quickly as you could, worried about Ricky, unsure if he was still okay to perform. 

“EJ is already getting ready to go on.” She tells you. It’s the only answer you need for how ugly things got. She ushers everyone to their places, trying her best to squash their questions and speculations of what’s going on. 

“Nothing you need to worry about, just find you places, get in character, get ready for act two…” she instructs. She pulls you aside before you enter the wings. 

“Mr. Mazzara is escorting her out as we speak.” she informs you quietly. 

“Wait, Mr. Mazzara is here?” you ask. She pauses.

“Uh, yes. He’s been… helping run the lights up in the control booth. It was a last minute-” she shakes her head. “It doesn’t matter. The point is, the… shrew is leaving and Mike is on his way back to check on Ricky.” You’re relieved that his dad is here for him - and Miss Jenn. You look around momentarily. 

“Where is he?” you ask. 

“That dusty storage room we shoved the creepy mannequins in.” 

The one with the piano. The one where he helped you come down from a panic attack your first day at the El Rey, and… 

“...So they’re probably going to wait until the show is over, then head home.” You snap out of the onslaught of memories that stirred up at the mention of that storage room, catching the last half of what she said. “You can keep your phone in the wings to stay in touch, just make sure it’s not a distraction.” 

“Okay,” you agree, already feeling it buzzing in your pocket. She nudges you toward the wings as the intro to I Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You starts playing, Nini and EJ’s voices should be floating through the house. 

“Now, go be Sharpay!” she says with a smile, and you start to turn the corner, then pause. 

“Miss Jenn!” you whisper-yell, and she looks back up at you. “Thank you! For everything.” you say sincerely. She places her hands on her chest, smiling, and you finally find your place backstage. 

“Like, full on screaming,” you hear Zeke say to Martha. You try to ignore them, and everyone else talking and whispering. You knew it would spread like wildfire, backstage drama always does. You pull out your phone, blowing up with texts from Ricky and his dad. You keep switching between the two text threads, trying to figure out what happened, to make sure Ricky’s okay. As you type out replies to both him and his dad, you look out onto the stage. Something doesn’t sound right, the gaps between the dialog are too long. 

Your brow furrows, trying to figure out what’s going on. EJ’s hand comes up to his collar and he leans forward. Nina delivers her next line more stilted and awkward and out of character than anything you’ve ever seen. You watch, confusion turning into disbelief as Nina covers her mic with her hand, and whispers something to EJ. Being so close to where they’re standing, you’re able to catch most of what she says - ‘seriously, EJ, where’s Ricky?’, or something to that effect. 

High pitched feedback whines at the disturbance to her mic, and for a moment you think you must have imagined it. There’s no way, no chance in hell she covered her mic with her hand, broke character onstage, and got EJ to break character too. You take a few breaths, reminding yourself that you’re not the director. Miss Jenn will have to deal with that one. Your phone buzzes as you get more texts from Ricky, and you check it again. 

Ricky stares at the little gray box on his screen, letting your words sink in. He still has four shows to perform in. He has more than just tonight to look forward to. All of those shows, every single one of them, is going to go just fine. Even now, through the worst possible nightmare of a thing that could have happened, the show is still continuing; the show must go on. And it will. It is, right in front of his eyes, as he and his dad enter the auditorium, taking two empty seats, Ricky’s right on the aisle. EJ and Nini harmonize, dancing around the stage - like he was supposed to. They finish the last verse of Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You, as the audience applauds. He claps politely as the lights go down. 

He mentally runs through what he would be doing if he were back there with you guys. You’re probably getting ready for the scene at Sharpay’s locker with Zeke, standing center stage in the dark, looking at the prop accessories in the pink locker, while Zeke mentally goes over his lines and blocking in the stage left wing. The lights go up, and he’s right. He knows this whole show inside and out, he realizes, and it makes his chest squeeze. Instead of dwelling on that, he leans forward, watching the scene begin to play out. He realizes suddenly that he gets to actually watch you perform. Not just from the wings or during rehearsals or in a grainy camcorder video, but he gets to watch you live. 

He smiles a little, realizing how special that is. You deliver your lines flawlessly, bringing a chuckle from the audience with your attitude right when you want one. It’s crazy how you play the mean girl so well, when it couldn’t be further from your real personality. He figures you’re just that amazing. You let out a shrill, frustrated scream, then storm off stage with Zeke trailing after you. When the lights go down, he claps loudly, letting out a cheer. He lets out a shaky breath, knowing you’ll be in the next scene, too - you’re probably quick changing for it right now. 

He’s right again, and backstage, you pull on your jacket, relieved to be done a little earlier than usual. It’s probably nerves from everything that happened tonight making you go a little quicker, but you’re not complaining. 

“So,” Seb says quietly next to you, bending over to tug on his heels, “what happened earlier? It sounded bad…” You let out a slow, frustrated sigh. He gets the sense it wasn’t just bad, it was really bad. 

“Just…” you search for the words, “some personal stuff. Family stuff, I guess.” 

“Bad enough for him to leave halfway through the show?” he asks, and you can tell he’s concerned. You pause fixing your belt, looking up to the catwalk and praying for the strength to get through tonight. Seb is one of the sweetest people you’ve ever met, and you know he wouldn’t hurt a fly, but the last thing you need to do is add to the whispers, the desire for someone to spill the tea on what happened during intermission. 

“It’s really not for me to say…” you trail off, glancing at the other groups of castmates waiting to go on and techies listening for their cues. ‘Later’, you mouth to him. You have to go on any minute, and you want to text Ricky about it before you tell anyone anything. It’s really not your place to tell anyone what’s going on in his homelife. You pull out your phone, sending him a quick text that says some of your friends are worried about him, and does he want you to say anything or keep it under wraps for now. You turn your phone on silent and hide it in your bra before making your entrance on time. 

Seb lets out a huff, then follows you off stage as the ensemble runs in from the wings and the music for Wildcat Cheer reprise starts playing. As the ensemble begins dancing, Ricky checks his phone again, seeing a new text from you. ‘What do you want me to say?’ He pauses, staring at the screen. What does he want you to say? Nothing, at first. For a painful, fleeting moment, he wishes none of this had ever happened in the first place, he wishes he didn’t have to keep making up excuses and brushing things off. He doesn’t have to, he realizes. He doesn’t have to keep covering for her, and overcompensating for her shitty decisions. He bites the inside of his cheek, then texts you back. 

Backstage, you return to the stage right wing, ready for your next scene. You check to see if Ricky has texted you back, and he did. ‘Tell them she showed up unannounced and we got in a fight. I’m not trying to make her look good anymore.’ You agree, and a part of you is glad he’s not making himself responsible for his mother’s emotions anymore. When your scene is over, you rush to your dressing room to get ready for Bop to the Top. You have a full costume and hair change, and you need to tweak your makeup a little, so it usually takes you the longest to get ready for. Once you’ve applied enough body glitter to choke a bratz doll, you leave your dressing room, meeting Seb on the way to the wings. 

Most of the cast is onstage right now, so it’s not very crowded backstage where you stand, waiting for the current song to end. Seb moves a little closer to you and lowers his voice.

“I know it’s probably not a good time to ask, but what in the Mount Saint Helens happened with Ricky?” He asks in a hushed, worried tone. You bite back a smile at his turns of phrase, and sigh. You think back to Ricky’s text, how he said he’s done covering for her. 

“His mother showed up…” you say slowly, pausing at the shocked expression on his face. 

“She what?” he exclaims quietly. 

“And she tried to corner Ricky during intermission,” he gasps, and you continue, “and they got into a huge fight.” 

“Oh my god.” he says, thinking back to the yelling he’d heard. 

“Mhm.” you confirm, “Miss Jenn had to kick her out so she wouldn’t cause more of a scene.” 

“Oh my god!” he gasps in disbelief that it got that bad. He feels like he’s on an episode of Real Housewives. Or maybe Dance Moms. 

“Poor Ricky… Is he okay?” His mind constructs different images of Ricky’s mother ambushing him while he tries to get ready for act two. He can’t imagine how terrible that must have been. 

“As much as he can be right now,” you say. Seb can see how worried you are about him. This night took a toll on you, and he’s sure Ricky’s dad and Miss Jenn can’t be doing much better. It makes sense, and he’s glad to at least know what happened. 

“That’s pretty much it, but I’ll give you the details later.” you say, noting that you have to go on soon, and walking over to Ashlyn so you can enter together. 

The music starts, and Ricky has never been more excited for Bop to the Top. He’s never had the opportunity to see you and Seb perform full out like this from the audience, he’s always been just out of view before because of the blocking and where he was supposed to stand on stage. But now, he’s front and center, watching the light bounce off the glitter scattered across your chest and arms. You’re in a gorgeous, glittering teal dress that bounces and moves with every step you take. Your silver sparkling heels match your bracelets, and your hair is pinned up with big pink and white flowers on the side. Seb begins to dance with you, wearing a coordinating outfit that’s just as flashy. 

As the music cuts between the basketball game and science decathlon, you and Seb continue to steal the show. Your singing is gorgeous and your choreography is flawless. You harmonize as you spin around, totally in sync. Your attitude, your charisma is overflowing. The two most important events of the show are happening on either side of you, and you’re keeping all eyes center stage. He’s never seen a number with this much energy, this much flare, and based on the way the crowd is reacting, they feel the same way. 

As the tension builds, as the time to score the winning shot runs out and the science questions get harder and harder, as the music builds, Ricky’s breath is taken away. At the climax of the number, the East High Wildcats win the championship basketball game, and the science decathlon at the same moment. You and Seb hit the final note, holding it out as you strike your ending pose. Right as you’re done, Taylor kills the lights. 

Ricky is stunned at how good the show looks from the audience. But in spite of how amazing it’s been, he can’t ignore the gnawing in his chest anymore. He’s been trying so hard to focus on you, to not be jealous of EJ standing up there reciting his lines, singing his parts and doing his choreography. Seeing EJ up there, seeing Carlos struggle to fill in as Chad makes his stomach sink. It’s supposed to be him up there. He’s supposed to be the one scrambling to make it to callbacks on time, just like he did in real life all those months ago. He turns his attention back to you, as you begin your biggest Sharpay diva moment of the show. 

You storm off with Seb at your heels, and you both begin to get changed for the finale. As you get dressed into your white and red outfits, you can’t resist telling him a little more about what happened during act one and intermission. 

“...And she just stormed up to me, demanding to see him. Like, I told her, ‘you’re not cast or crew, you are so not allowed to be back here’, but she didn’t care!” Your voice is intense, but hushed. 

“Are you kidding?” he demands, shock evident on his face. 

“I wish I was…” you laugh softly, just as flabbergasted by the recent turn of events as he is. You inch closer to the curtain, and see Ricky wave to you in the audience - or more specifically in the general direction of where he knows you’d be right about now. His eyes are still a little pink and puffy, and it’s obvious how much everything that happened tonight has fucked him up. Your chest squeezes at the sight, and you wish you could hug him or do something to help. You sigh, trying to think of something encouraging to text him when you get a spare minute to. You snap out of your train of thought when you realize it’s quiet onstage. Your stomach sinks as EJ repeats his line, trying to cue Nina.

“Oh god,” you mutter next to Seb. 

“Did she forget her lines?” he asks. Her head turns, and you see what she’s looking at - who she’s looking at. You’re minutes away from the finale of the show, and she’s staring at Ricky. EJ begins speaking again, reciting his lines, but he just keeps going.

“Is he improving?” you ask rhetorically. “Why is he improving?” 

You have no idea what’s going on, but this show is going off the rails so fast. It’s like a slow motion trainwreck, and you find yourself unable to look away as Nina whispers to him out of character, for the second time in the last hour. You can feel your blood pressure rise as she breaks character too, the both of them floundering onstage and deviating from every rule of theatre Miss Jenn has been drilling into your heads for the last three months. Again, EJ speaks up, not even trying at this point. 

“I’m not the Troy you want,” he says melancholically. 

“What the fuck are they doing?” you hiss, and Seb can tell that after everything that happened tonight, this is really the last straw for you - you’re out for blood. You watch in disbelief as EJ just… walks offstage. And that’s it. You think it’s a really good thing he exited to the other side of the stage, because you sure have some choice words for him right now. 

“What is he doing?!” you question again, more pissed off than Seb has ever seen you. As if things couldn’t possibly get worse, you can’t believe what you’re seeing. Nina picks up her mic and begins to walk toward the edge of the stage, singing acapella. 

“She better not fucking do what I think she’s doing.” your voice is quiet, dangerous, and Seb is momentarily worried on her behalf. Even though you’re like, the nicest person ever, he doesn’t think anyone would want to be on your bad side.

Your hand flies over your mouth in utter disbelief as she walks into the audience and right over to Ricky, signaling for Big Red to follow her with a spotlight. Just when you think this couldn’t be more of an amature hour shit show, she pulls out her phone, turning her flashlight on him. You have no idea what she thinks that’s going to do, and thank god when she puts it away after a minute. She grabs Ricky’s hand, trying multiple times to pull him out of his seat. His heart is pounding, and he can feel himself freezing up. He has no idea what’s happening or why she’s doing this, and he has even less of an idea what he’s supposed to do. 

“I’m… really not at my best right now…” he manages to choke out. She doesn’t listen, and grips his hand, limp in hers. 

“Just look at me, Ricky. Right at me.” She smiles, like that will fix anything. He shouldn’t go up there, he shouldn’t go onstage when he’s like this. He and his dad had a whole conversation about it after intermission. But with everyone staring at him, Nini begins to sing. When she holds out the mic for him to finish the verse, he does, almost on instinct. He can’t leave her hanging, not like this. He panics, and next thing he knows, he’s letting her drag him onstage. He doesn’t know what’s happening, why she’s doing this, but he moves automatically and lets her drag him onstage. 

He’s struggling to keep his voice level, using all his effort to push past the pain, and smile at her. As she finally brings him center stage, taking his shaking hands in hers, he fights with everything inside him to make this work, to make it convincing, and be the finale it was supposed to be. He just has to keep it together for this last number, work through the pain, the ache in his chest and stomach that’s killing him as he stands up there, just for three minutes. As the rest of the cast begins to hit their cues, the energy has never been higher. They’re giving it everything they’ve got to hype him up, give him something to hold onto. He can feel them reaching out to him, singing and dancing their hearts out to lift him up. 

He’s trying so hard to be Troy, to seem convincing, to smile sincerely - not at Nini, but at Gabriella. He holds her hands, beaming, thinking about how badly Troy wants to kiss her. He clings onto this moment, the music, this role like a lifeboat. Troy has a great relationship with both his parents, Troy doesn’t come from a broken home. Troy is okay, he’s never been better, which means that Ricky gets to be okay vicariously through him, just for a little while. Just for a few minutes. He holds onto this catharsis as tightly as he can. He’s not going to let this moment be taken away from him too. The audience is cheering louder than ever as they make their way to the end of the song, incredibly confused at the cast changes and Nini’s actions, but they cheer everyone on - especially Ricky - nonetheless. 

He smiles at her through misty eyes, holding her hands and gazing at her in adoration. ‘This is it,’ Nini thinks, ‘my Ricky has come back to me. It’s always going to be us.’ He caresses her cheek, and looks at her like he really wants to kiss her as they harmonize. She knows he wants to kiss her, he’s always loved her and he’s always going to. They’ve had their ups and downs, but she knows that Ricky will always be hers. She was his first love, his first everything, and that’s what really matters. They have history, and you can’t fake that, you can’t manufacture that. 

The song ends and she drags him into the wings away from you and Seb, shoving his finale costume at him. He fumbles to take off his jacket, desperately trying to stay in motion, to keep moving, keep smiling, keep being Troy. He throws the sparkly white and red tracksuit on over his remaining clothes, and has seconds before he’s going to get dragged back out for the finale of a show he was only able to half participate in. He hates her so much for ruining this for him. He hates Nini for dragging him back up here, for literally putting him in a spotlight in the aftermath of the worst event of his life. He sucks it up, putting on a smile and getting hyped up to sing along to the megamix. 

It takes one look at your face for Seb to know just how bad this is. He can feel the rage, the disbelief radiating off of you, and he has no idea what’s going to happen after this. He thinks it’s nice that Nini tried to include Ricky, but she definitely didn’t go about it the right way. He’s sure you’d feel that’s probably the biggest understatement that could be made about the situation. 

“Are you okay?” he asks quietly, really worried. There’s already been so much drama tonight, he knows your bullshit tolerance is in the negatives right now. You stare at Nina across the stage, watching her whisper something to Kourtney with an expression on her face that infuriates you.

“Not sure yet.” You answer quietly, voice dangerous. Finally, you hear your cue, and you and Seb enter the stage.

He watches you change on a dime, transforming into a sassy, fun, reformed mean girl. You dance with him, and flirt with Zeke effortlessly. He can’t find a trace of your previous rage once you’re past the curtain, singing and dancing as Sharpay. There’s a light, fun, playful energy around you, and it’s infectious, making Seb and Zeke and everyone else around you have even more fun out there. For a moment, he forgets how ugly this is going to get once the lights go down. 

You make your way over to Gabriella, doing a little dance with her, just like you’re supposed to. You flash her a thumbs up, and wink at her supportively when Troy pulls her closer to dance, just like you’ve been practicing at every rehearsal leading up to this moment. Nina smiles at you when you do, interpreting yours and Ricky’s behavior as more than just stage directions. She feels a sense of benevolent camaraderie with you in these fleeting moments. Maybe she will be the bigger person, maybe she will extend her friendship to you, because even though you did try to steal Ricky from her - unsuccessfully at that - fighting over dumb boys is stupid. 

She and Gina run off to pull Miss Jenn onstage so she can deliver her infamous deleted line. It was your idea initially, but you made sure to tell the rest of the cast before tonight so the surprise could be from all of you. The cast and house cheer as she delivers her line, and you can see how much it means to her. You get a minute to dance with Ricky, and make your way over to him as quickly and naturally as possible. You couldn’t seem happier or more care free, but when you speak, your voice is strained. 

“I am so sorry that happened…” you say, barely loud enough for him to hear over the swell of the music and the rhythmic clapping as the audience keeps time. He can see it, the frustration being masked by your energetic, jovial nature. You’re doing the same thing he is, he realizes. You’re using this moment onstage and in character to keep the real world at bay. He doesn’t think he’s ever felt closer to you than he does right now. He wants to say something, he wants to feel horrible - he’s sure it’s justified - but when he looks at you, he can’t 

You’re onstage together at the end of your opening night performance, with a full house clapping and cheering and singing along with you both, with the whole cast. And in this moment, you’re worried about him. You’re worried about him. He’s so overwhelmed by this feeling of being onstage with all his friends, an audience full of people who came here and bought tickets and watched the show and are now cheering them on for this, the penultimate moment of all their hard work and dedication and doubts over the last three months culminating to this. He knows you know this feeling well, that this is the first show you’ve done in so long and how badly you’ve missed it - and you’re still up here, worried about him. 

“There were some… hiccups, but…” he starts, locking eyes with yours, looking at you that way that he does. He doesn’t think he’s ever felt more strongly for you than he does right now. “This is kind of the best, right?” You smile suddenly at his words, relief evident on your face. You feel like you can breathe a little easier knowing he’s doing okay - or at least, better than he was. 

“This is just the tip of the iceberg babe,” you chuckle, nudging him playfully. You’re still livid at that… stunt Nina pulled, that hasn’t slipped your mind. But for now, Ricky is okay. That’s what’s important. You’ll deal with her later, if you get the chance. 

“Just wait till you see what I have picked out for the spring musical!” you both look over at Miss Jenn as she smiles, drawing an excited laugh from you and Ricky. 

Nina looks over, hearing you laughing with Ricky. It makes her stomach sink. She scoffs, figuring it must be platonic. He’s probably just giving you closure, or something. She looks back out into the crowd, and stops dancing as she watches the scout from YAC leave. Her mouth hangs open in disbelief. If she doesn’t get into YAC, the performing arts school of her dreams, what was the point of all this?

After everyone runs forward in groups, then individually to bow in front of the audience, You, Nina, and Ricky are the last to go. He stands between you, lined up with everyone else, holding both your hands as you and all your friends bow as a cast.  He snaps to attention as he hears a certain part of the music, squeezing your hand in warning. Confetti cannons go off from the wings moments later, drawing out a new wave of cheers and applause from the audience. You’re grateful for the warning, and you squeeze his hand back as a thank you. Your heart is warmed that even now, after so many difficult things happening back to back in one night, he still remembered that loud noises can make you jumpy. 

When Nina goes to share a look with Ricky, her smile drops. He’s already looking at you. There’s a certain type of joy in his eye, the kind you can only find amidst the ashes of misery, as he realizes that through everything that happened, he’s still okay. You’re still here. That’s the important part. You’re still right here with him, holding his hand. He made it to bows. Everything is going to be okay. In sharing this eye contact with him, you can’t help but reflect on how pretty he looks in the blue cast of the stage lights as he looks at you that way that makes your stomach twist. 

The curtains begin to draw closed, and you all wave at the audience until they’re out of sight. Sporadic cheers are let out around you as hugs are initiated here and there, and everyone begins flooding to the dressing rooms to get changed. As you make your way to the back, Ashlyn already leading everyone in a very loud, high energy reprise of We’re All in This Together, you squeeze Ricky’s arm. When he looks at you, he seems to be doing exactly as well as you’d expect - okay for now, the massive high from the end of the show keeping him afloat for now, but you know it won’t last forever. 

“I’m gonna go get changed real quick, I’ll say hi to my mom then we can go home, okay?” you say quietly, and he can tell from your tone of voice that you’re here for him, he just needs to hang in there a little longer. 

“Okay,” he says with a shaky breath. He doesn’t really need to get changed since he has his street clothes on under his tracksuit, so after hanging it up in its place, he waits in the hall outside the dressing rooms. A few minutes later, everyone who got changed the fastest are in the halls and on the stairs outside the dressing rooms, talking and congratulating each other before they go to the lobby. There's a silent understanding that you're all waiting just a few more minutes before you have to leave, before you have to acknowledge that the show is over. Big Red runs over to Ricky as soon as he spots him. 

“Are you okay, dude?” he asks quietly, clearly worried about him. Ricky lets out a breathy laugh. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m okay.” Ricky realizes how stressed he must be, having no idea of anything that was going on until half way through the show. "There’s a lot to fill you in on." Ricky nods his head, and they move to a more secluded area so Ricky can begin catching him up. He goes over the series of events from earlier tonight quickly, trying not to get worked up over all of it again. Soon he's wrapping up his summary of the horrible things that happened in such a short span of time, and his eyes are much less misty than he was worried they'd be. 

"Oh. My. God." Red states, laughing in disbelief that his mother would do something like that. 

"Yeah." Ricky nods, still in shock. 

"Don't take this the wrong way, dude," Red says tentatively, "but that does sound like something she would do; the guilt tripping, mind games, all of it." Ricky can't help but agree. In retrospect, Red does remember her using a lot of language that read as passive aggressive or guilt  tripping. There’s no way they could have picked up on that as kids, but hindsight is 20/20. Ricky loses Red's attention real quick as Ashlyn walks toward her friends, no longer loitering outside the dressing room she shares with you and Nini - and soon, Gina. She holds up a piece of paper from the mystery bouquet she'd been inspecting more closely. 

“We found a card!” she says excitedly. Ricky nudges Red, encouraging him to tell Ashlyn that he was the one to send the flowers. He looks at Ricky, nervous, and gets an encouraging nod. Big Red takes a breath, steadying himself, then stands up and walks towards Ashlyn. 

"Actually…" he starts. He doesn't need to say anything else, watching the realization hit. They walk a few feet away, talking animatedly and seeming to have a good time. More people start to filter out to see their friends and family, and as they dissipate, he realizes he still hasn't seen you since you went to change. He spots Kourtney passing by a few feet away and runs over to her. 

"Hey, uh," he starts carefully. He knows Kourtney hasn't been too fond of him for a while. "Do you know where Nini is?" He knows where Gina and Ashlyn are, and he really just wants to grab you and get out of here without even more drama. Kourtney sucks her teeth, considering how to respond for a moment. She could say something, she always has something to say when it comes to Ricky, but she knows tonight was hard on him. She doesn't know the details, but she's sure the last thing she'd want in his position is more animosity. 

"The scout left, and she's taking it hard. I think she's with her moms, but I don't know for sure." He waits a beat, realizing there's no other shoe that's going to drop, no glares or snarky comments.

"Thanks," he says quietly, before making his way to your dressing room. You're probably just having trouble getting everything back in your bag. He thought you had way over packed when you showed him the huge tote bag you got ready for tech week, but by the end, every 'just in case you had brought had been needed more than once. You really know your way around a theater, he thinks. 

When you first enter your dressing room, all you want to do is get changed and get out. Ashlyn talks a little - mostly to herself - about how excited she is for the next show. You reply as politely as possible, doing everything you can to avoid Nina, ignore her as much as you can. You just have to get changed and get out. You have bigger issues to deal with, bigger fish to fry than to chew her out for what she did back there. 

"Yeah," she replies, a faux chipper tone to her voice "hopefully we won't have as many last minute cast changes tomorrow night," you pause, gripping the empty plastic hanger so hard your knuckles turn white. "But who knows, right?" 

You've tried your best, you really have, but you can't take her bullshit anymore. The hanger snaps in your hands with a loud crack. Ashlyn's eyes widen in surprise, and now out of costume, she makes her way to the door. 

"I'll give you two a minute…"

The cacophony of voices get louder for a moment as she opens the door to leave, then it's quiet again. You turn away from her to tug on your shoes, praying to god she'll just leave it alone, let you get out of here quietly. 

"Sorry," her voice is dripping with a passive aggressive ignorance that grates on your ears. "Did you have something to say to me?" Before she can scoff and drop a yeah, that's what I thought, you turn, looking over your shoulder at her with a stone cold glare. When you speak, your voice is so deadly, so sharp she feels like she's been stung. 

"Count yourself fucking lucky that I don't have time to hang around right now, but I swear to god, Nina, if you pull shit like that again-"

"Wh-" she sputters, "excuse me? Pull what? Including Ricky, and helping him?"

"You think you were helping him?" You repeat, turning to face her. You roll your eyes scoffing. "Wow." She starts to say something, but you cut her off. 

"Look, I don't know why you're here, but some of us actually take this seriously. This actually means something- this matters to some people, and nobody needs you turning it into a little three ring Nina circus, and ruining it for the people who actually want to be here!" Your voice rises as you continue, driving your point home, and refusing to let her interrupt you. By the time you’re done, her mouth is hanging open.

“I don’t care what you do in your free time,” you continue decisively, “I really don’t, but don’t ruin everything for the people who actually give a fuck!” you say, a humorless laugh at the end. You don’t know who’s been coddling her up until now, but you are sure as hell are not going to let someone get away with a stunt like that. It’s clear from her reaction that no one has ever spoken to her like this, and you think it’s long overdue. “That was the most unprofessional load of bullshit I have ever fucking seen! And I’ve been around the rodeo a few times.” 

Nina blinks hard, fighting tears prickling the corners of her eyes. She feels like she’s just been slapped. Her? Unprofessional? Wow. You’re really reaching now. She’s the most professional person at this whole school, she just… She freezes as it hits her in a split second of clarity, that she doesn’t have a leg to stand on. She broke the cardinal rules of theatre; she broke character, went into the audience, broke the immersion. She ruined opening night. You can see the moment of lucidity where she realizes she’s in the wrong, and it’s gone just as fast. 

“You’re one to talk about being a professional.” She spits. You look at her incredulously. Once again you have no idea where she’s going with this. When you don’t react, don’t instantly get it, she continues. 

“You had a Broadway career handed to you on a silver platter, and you threw it away!” she searches your face for shock that she figured out your secret, continuing, “And for what, so you could slum it at some midwestern high school full of amateurs?” 

You figured it was a matter of time before someone found out you’ve done professional theatre before, so if she’s waiting for a reaction from you, she’s not going to get one. The only reason you didn’t tell anyone, the only reason you kept quiet about it is because you didn’t want to come across as cocky or seem like you were bragging. Plus, with how hard things got towards the end, you don’t really want to go around and dig up memories from that time in your life. Besides, you’re not in New York right now, you’re at East High. You’re here with all your friends, finally getting a little piece of normalcy. You’re exactly where you want to be, so why would you waste it living in the past?

Before you can answer, she continues.

“The point is, you need to stay away from Ricky and stop lying to him. Okay?” she demands. Her voice is muffled through the door, but right outside, Ricky hears her loud and clear. He didn’t hear you two before, but now the halls and dressing rooms are mostly empty.

Is she still seriously going on about that? You let out a breath, trying to regain your composure. 

“I really do not have the time to keep having the same conversation with you over and over - or explain to you that you can’t tell people who they can and can’t date!” you exclaim. You’re about to drop it, but there’s one more thing you need to get off your chest. “And for the fucking record, you don’t know jack shit about what else was going on in my life when I left New York. And I don’t owe you an explanation either.” you say coldly. You’ve said your peace, the only thing you need to do is fucking get out of here and find Ricky. 

“I can’t believe I actually used to look up to you!” she exclaims. “Look. It was cute, or whatever, at first, but this little game of yours has gone on for long enough. He’s mine. Now can you leave him alone, please?” she demands. She’s dripping that passive aggression you’re really starting to get sick of. You look at her in the mirror, illuminated with lights. 

“Seriously? You seriously want to do this right now.” You say, exhausted. She either doesn’t hear you or pretends not to as she continues.

“I knew him first! I dated him first, I kissed him first. Everything he’s done with you, he did with me first.” she states. She doesn’t know how else to get it into your head that she was his first everything, and you’re just a rebound or something. What they have isn’t something you can just get over like that.

“You weren’t… every first, Nini.” You both look over at Ricky, and you wonder how long he’s been standing in the doorway, how much he heard. 

“Ricky… what?” she whips around at the sound of his voice. He stares back at her, teary eyed and serious. 

“You weren’t every first.” he repeats. You both look at him in disbelief. Nina furrows her brow. She can’t believe he’s disrespecting their relationship like this. You stare at him, thinking back, reanalyzing your memories. He can’t be saying what you think he’s saying. There’s no way you were his first time. That couldn’t have been his first time. There’s no way that Ricky Bowen was a virgin before he showed up at your house that night, there’s no way that you took his virginity. ‘Oh god, I did, didn’t I?’ you think, remembering the way he looked at you, how nervous and desperate he was. Heat floods to your cheeks. You have no idea what to do with this information.

“How could you say that?” she demands. She was his first crush, his first kiss, his first date, girlfriend, heartbreak. She was all of it. 

“Because it’s true!” he exclaims. “The only first I care about, the only first that matters, is right there.” he gestures to you. 

Oh yeah, no, you definitely did take his virginity. You did not expect this, much less that it would make you feel so… tender? Flattered? Warm and fuzzy maybe? You hold back a flustered laugh. Whatever warm thing it is, you’re sure feeling a lot of it. You stare at the ground, cheeks hot, butterflies fluttering in your stomach as you process this in the back of your mind. The majority of your attention is still on Ricky. You’ve been so worried, but he seems okay, which is a huge relief. He catches your eye, and your stomach twists. He’s looking at you like that again, and you’re sure you must be looking at him the same way. Anyone could see it. You snap back to attention, remembering Nina is still in the room with you. 

“We should get going-” you start quietly, reaching for your bag.

“Stay out of this!” she snaps, and you recoil at the sudden sharpness to her voice. “This is between Ricky and me.”  She turns to him, continuing, “And we are not done talking about this.” 

“Don’t talk to her like that.” He says quickly, more defensive of you after what happened earlier. He walks over to you, standing in between you and her. “Anything you have to say to me, you can say it in front of her.” Even though his voice wavers with emotion for a moment, Nina can tell he’s not backing down on this. She weighs her options. 

“Okay.” she starts, sucking her teeth. “I think she’s manipulating you.”

He lets out a breathy laugh with a bitter edge. He rolls his eyes, looking away for a second.

“That’s… hilarious, coming from you…” he mutters. 

“What? She’s been lying to you this whole time! She’s been doing professional theatre for years, Ricky, she-”

“That’s what this is about?” He realizes. “Oh my god, I already knew that!” he yells. Relief floods him as it clicks that all the bullshit she’s been spewing is nothing he didn’t know about already. She really was just trying to get into his head. “She’s not manipulating me, Nini, she’s there for me! There’s a difference! She actually cares about me - unlike you, and Lynne, and everybody else.” 

“That’s not fair-”

“She’s actually there for me, and she doesn’t just bail when shit gets hard. Not like you’d know anything about that.” he says the last part quieter, but she still hears it. She doesn’t have a comeback, she doesn’t have anything she can say to that. 

“I don’t have to listen to this.” She grabs her bag, brushing past him. Before she leaves, he turns to her, finally saying something he never thought he’d be able to. 

“I’m starting to think I wasn’t the problem in our relationship.” 

She freezes, turning to him slowly, eyes glistening.

“What?”

“You heard me.” he states. 

“You know what?” There’s nothing she can say, no comeback, no way to defend herself. She lets a single tear fall. “Screw you, Ricky.” She leaves quickly, huffing at what he said. He turns to you, still staring at where she left in disbelief. You exhale for what feels like the first time since this confrontation began, then immediately turn your attention back to Ricky. You’re grabbing your stuff as quickly as you can, desperate to finally get out of here, laughing nervously. 

“I can’t believe this night keeps getting worse. Look, we can just go home, we don’t have to go to Denny’s or anything if you don’t want to, I just want to make sure you’re okay, because obviously a lot of-” 

“I love you.” 

It tears from his throat with more raw emotion than you’ve ever heard, stopping you in your tracks. Your eyes widen as his hands come up to hold your face. He wants to kiss you so badly, more than he’s wanted anything, and you can feel it. He keeps going.

“I love you so much, I wanted to say it before. I’ve wanted to say it since that first amazing night we spent together. Ever since you snuck me into your room, and we talked and watched old episodes of cartoons, and you took me in when I needed you, I have loved you. And then you got those little plastic rings when we were running late for rehearsal, because we stopped for coffee and peach scones, and- and we traded colors, I felt like my heart was going to explode.” 

His thumbs caress your cheeks, and it makes you light headed. 

“I wanted to say it when we were dancing at homecoming and you were so beautiful I thought I’d die, I wanted to say it every time we kissed, and every time you laugh so hard your nose scrunches up, I wanted to say it. You made me fall in love with theatre, and this beautiful place, and with you. You love everyone around you so selflessly,” his voice breaks, “please, let me love you. The way you deserve to be loved. Even if you don’t want to say it back-” 

“I love you too.” You can’t help interrupting him, unable to ignore how true they are any longer. He’s stopped dead in his tracks. “I would have said something sooner, but the last thing I wanted was for you to feel pressured, so I… figured I’d follow your lead.” The room is quiet as he tries to get the air back in his lungs. 

“You love me?” he breathes.

“Yeah,” you confirm, nodding, “I do.” 

He takes one look at you, holding you intensely in his gaze, confirming that you really just said that. In one swift motion, he pulls you close to him, dipping you, and finally connects his lips to yours. He kisses you more passionately than anything he’s ever done. He kisses the air out of your lungs, kisses away the little space between you, desperately kissing everything he feels for you onto your lips. You lose yourself for a beautiful moment in that kiss. You’re not sure how long you stay like that, holding each other as close as you can get, with kissing as the only means of expressing the depths of your feelings, but it’s long enough that your lungs burn when you finally pull away. He barely moves his face away from yours as you attempt in sync to catch your breath. 

“Say it again,” he murmurs against your lips. 

“I love you,” you say, soft and sincere, that beautiful smile on your lips where his ache to be again. He reacts instantly to your words, picking you up, and kissing you again and again. You wrap your legs around his waist, giggling in surprise. He sets you on the table in front of the big dressing room mirror where Ashlyn’s character shoes still sit. The mental note to make sure she doesn’t forget them flies out of your mind as Ricky kisses you again and again, mouth open against yours. His lips are all over your face and your neck, turning you into a giggling mess as he holds you tight. He mutters sweet nothings against your skin that turn sensual very quick, but mostly he keeps telling you how much he loves you between kisses, mumbling the three words into your skin over and over. 

“Ricky…” you trail off as he bites your neck playfully, causing you to let out a flustered noise. “We have to go upstairs…” you start to forget what you were saying as he runs his tongue over your skin. “Our parents are waiting!” you laugh, desperately holding onto the train of thought. 

“Let them wait…” he murmurs, “You said we could kiss after the show, and… it’s after.” The flustered look on your face is too much for him, and he presses his lips to yours again, pushing his tongue into your mouth. You feel so good, your skin is so soft and you smell so sweet, and it’s all so much more now that he’s said it, now that you said it back to him. He squeezes your thigh and bites your lip and moans into your mouth, loving every noise you make, every tug of his hair and grab of his shirt. He’s so desperate for you and your touch, he would fuck you right here if he could. He considers it for a moment. 

After eavesdropping too long for her own good, Nina feels a solitary tear roll down her cheek. Ricky’s words ring in her ears. He loves you. He didn’t just say it back, he initiated it. She didn’t stick around too long, just enough for it to hurt. She reaches into her bag, pulling out her songwriting book. She’s sure this will give her plenty to write about, she thinks bitterly. She could probably get a whole album out of it. ‘At least then the pain would be worth something…’ she muses, taking one last look over her shoulder before leaving the dressing rooms - and Ricky - out of her sight.

Eventually, you and Ricky manage to drag yourselves upstairs and greet people in the lobby. Mike finds him quickly, pulling him aside to check on him. He looks back over at you, accepting flowers from your mom and pulling her in for a hug. 

“Yeah,” he says. “I’m okay.” He doesn’t look away from you, and Mike doesn’t miss this. His son is a lot of wonderful things, but he sure wouldn’t describe him as subtle. Ricky watches you as a girl in a pink dress walks up nervously to you with who he presumes is her sister. He’s too far away to hear your conversation over the chatter from people milling about, but your face lights up after she speaks. You pull a hot pink sharpie out of your bag and sign her playbill before handing it back to her. The sight makes his chest squeeze. He didn’t know you were good with kids, but it makes total sense - you’re good with everybody. 

Mike nudges him toward you.

“Go ahead,” he smiles, so Ricky does. 

“Hey,” he starts, pausing when a woman walks up to him, a little girl hiding behind her leg, looking up at Ricky in admiration. 

“Excuse me,” the woman says, getting his attention. “You were fantastic. She really loves High School Musical, and we wanted to know if you’d sign her playbill…” 

The girl looks up at him nervously, and he smiles, letting out a flustered chuckle. He didn’t expect this, he doesn’t even have a pen - but luckily as always you’re right behind him, extending a sharpie his way. 

“Yeah,” he smiles, “sure, of course!” He scribbles his name across the front before handing it back. “What was your favorite part?” he asks. She considers. 

“We’re All in This Together.” she decides, singing out the song title. 

“No way, that’s my favorite song too!” The way her face lights up is something he doesn’t think he’ll ever forget. She jumps excitedly that someone as cool as Troy Bolton has the same favorite song as her before hiding behind her mom’s legs again. The mom thanks him again before picking up her daughter. Ricky turns to you, not even needing to say anything. 

“I know,” you smile, “it’s the best, right?” 

“Yeah,” he agrees. “It is.” Your eyes light up that way they do when you remember something, and you reach into your bag. You pull out Ashlyn’s character shoes - thank god you remembered to bring them out with you - and gesture down the hall to where Ashlyn is talking to some of her friends that came to see the show. 

“I’m gonna give these back to Ashlyn, and I’ll meet you and our parents by the doors in like, two seconds.” He agrees, and you part ways. 

“Thank you!” Ashlyn gasps when you hand her the shoes. “I was looking everywhere for these.” 

She pauses, remembering how tense things got between you and Nini earlier before she left. 

“Was everything okay with…” she trails off, jogging your memory. 

“Oh,” you start, a little unsure of how to answer. “Yeah. Everything’s fine now.” You look off to the side, and she follows your gaze to Ricky. He’s talking to his dad and seems to be doing a lot better now, and you seem to be doing better too. 

As you make your way down the hall and across the lobby you’re stopped by a woman you don’t recognize, but she seems to know you, addressing you by name as she introduces herself. 

“I’m Kalyani Patel, the dean of the Youth Actors Conservatory in Denver. I’ve been following your career for some time, and I have to say, I’m very impressed. You’re incredibly talented and have a lot of notable credits for someone as young as you are. We have one more available place available for the upcoming semester, and we would be thrilled for you to attend.” 

“Thank you so much, Kalyani. I’ve heard a lot about Youth Actors Conservatory, and I’m so honored by your offer, but I’m not planning on switching schools at the moment.” You say as graciously as you can. 

“Of course, I understand.” She smiles. 

“Thank you again for the opportunity, and I hope we can work together in the future.” You smile back, saying goodbye, and making your way over to Ricky and your parents. 

After returning to the dressing rooms to write sad song lyrics and watch herself cry in the mirror, when Nina finally finds her moms in the lobby, she has a piece of good news for once.

“The dean of YAC!” she exclaims. 

“I thought they were full, sweetie.” Carol says. She and Dana had gotten a rejection letter addressed to Nini a few days ago, and were trying to find the right time to break the news. 

“She said a spot opened up,” she beams, “which means I’m going to YAC!” 

Her moms hug her, congratulating her on the good news, and that they’d discuss it in detail at home. Nina looks over to where you and Ricky are standing. He holds your hands in his while you talk quietly. You have no idea that soon she’ll be out of here, and you’ll never see her again. She was on the fence, but after what he said to you, she’s made up her mind. She’s leaving this town, and going somewhere that she’ll be appreciated, somewhere she’s wanted. If that happens to be a boarding school in Colorado, then so be it. ‘Take a good look’, she thinks, ‘because that’s the last you’ll ever see of Nini Salazar-Roberts.’ 

 After more mingling, congratulations, flowers, and playbill signing, you turn to Ricky.

“You ready to go home?” you ask, walking toward your car. He stops, turning to look at you. 

“You know what? No.” he lets out a breathy laugh. “I don’t want to go home. I… want to go to Denny’s! I’m a theatre kid, and I just finished my first show, and it’s like, tradition to go to Denny’s, so I want to!” You smile at his sudden enthusiasm, laughter matching his. 

“Yeah, okay,” you smile, “let’s go!” 

You both walk over to your castmates, who are trying to figure out a carpool to get everyone there before it gets any later. You nudge Ricky.

“So, does anyone need a ride to Denny’s, or should we just meet you there?” he asks. For what feels like the millionth time, everyone erupts into cheers. You know all your friends were worried about him after what happened, and Seb instigates a group hug, that everyone quickly jumps on to. You think it’s important to end the night on a good note like this, spending time with your castmates, cramming into booths and singing obnoxiously in an empty restaurant. It’s sort of a rite of passage, and you’re glad that Ricky’s able to participate, especially after opening night of his first show. 

You sleep over at his place that night. After everything Ricky’s been through, after he seems to finally be okay again, the last thing Mike wants to do is not let him spend time with someone he’s so close to - especially considering what a good influence Mike thinks you are on him. From what Ricky told him, you didn’t instigate any drama tonight, and spent every spare moment off stage trying to help Ricky through what was going on. It’s not the first time you’ve helped Ricky navigate the ups and downs of growing up in the time you’ve known him, so when Ricky asked if you could stay the night, he agreed. While you’re brushing your teeth, Mike pulls Ricky aside to talk. 

“I spoke to Nini’s moms,” he starts, and Ricky braces himself. “They’re going to talk to her, and I said I’d talk to you to make sure these last shows go smoothly, alright? So, no more fights, no arguing, no more of this… reality tv stuff.” 

“Believe me,” Ricky sighs, “I don’t want any more drama. Especially at the expense of the show.” 

“I know,” Mike agrees. “So just… it’s only a few more shows. Try your best to…” he looks for the words.

“Politely avoid each other?” Ricky supplements.

“Exactly.” Mike nods. “Just politely avoid each other for a few more days, and all this will blow over.” 

When he finally reenters his room, he hands you a t shirt to wear. He knows you probably brought pajamas, but he wants to tell you he loves you in as many ways as he can, like wearing his clothes. When you come back in and sit on his bed in his big shirt and your little shorts, he doesn’t think you’ve ever looked more beautiful. 

“Do you want to talk about anything?” you ask tentatively. 

“Not really,” he chuckles. “I feel like I’ve kind of talked it all to death by now.”

“You know what we haven’t talked about?” you ask, a look in your eye that immediately has his attention. “How Nina and EJ - but like, mostly Nina - ruined the finale of the show.” 

“Yeah,” he starts, remembering how stunned he was. “What the fuck was that?” 

You talk shit until you have nothing else to say about it, and soon you’re curled up under the covers together. You’re laughing and talking, and things almost feel normal again. It’s like every bad thing never happened tonight. He doesn’t know how you do it, how you make things feel so okay again, but he holds you tight, clinging onto the feeling. He was going to say it earlier, but he was so distracted by you, by how beautiful you are. 

“I love you.” he says, pressing a kiss to your forehead. He feels you smile against his chest. 

“I love you too, Ricky.” 

You sound so content, so comfortable with him, and he feels like his heart is going to burst. 

“I love you,” he says again, running his fingers along your waist. 

“I love you too,” you giggle sleepily. Every time you think he’s asleep, he says it again, and again, and again. He can’t help himself, he loves the way you blush and giggle, loves how warm you are against him, loves the way you say it back to him. It’s quiet for a little while, but you feel his hands still tracing little shapes into your skin. You glance up at him to find him staring at you  in that way that makes your stomach twist. 

“Close your eyes,” you mutter, drowsy. 

“But I love you.” he replies quietly, and you can hear the smile in his voice. “I love looking at you. I love everything about you.” 

“I love you too,” you answer groggily, and he doesn’t think he’s ever felt better than he does when you say it like that. “But we have a full day of school in the morning, then homework, then another show to perform in, so we have to get at least a little sleep.”

“Yeah,” he sighs, eyes growing heavy as the day catches up to him. “As long as we have time for coffee and peach scones.”

“There is literally always time for coffee and peach scones.” he chuckles at how quickly you respond. You lean up, pressing a kiss to his nose, then snuggle back into his chest. It’s his favorite time of day again, he realizes, where he gets to sleep next to you, and kiss, and cuddle. Except this time, it’s better than it ever has been, because right before you fall asleep, he gets to say it.

“I love you.” he breathes, kissing your forehead.

“‘Love you too.” you mutter, barely awake. Your words reverberate and replay in his mind as he closes his eyes, finally drifting off. He doesn’t know how the next shows are going to go, he doesn't know what’s going to happen tomorrow, but he doesn’t care. He doesn’t care about what will happen when the sun rises,  he’s just excited for it to happen with you. He sleeps better than he has in a long time. 

#hsmtmts ricky #ricky bowen #ricky bowen x reader #hsmtmts #hsmtmts x reader #rocks at your window #I was watching the first episode and there were all the flashes and jumpscares of basment guy (idk his name) but I was like #'oh that guy? that's babyman. he's my neighbor :)' #I love that violet is both pro smoking and pro litter btw #bold stance

[inkbutterflyuniverse]

I enjoyed last HSMTMTS but my Portwell heart hurt.

Yes I know that since the first episode they are trying to show us that EJ and Gina will break up but I don't want that. 😭

About the episode in general: I loved color war, it was really fun, and I'm very happy that the yellow team won.

I'm proud of Gina and I was sad that EJ wasn't here to see that three points, even if he was with Miss Jen to be the best director he could be.

I loved seeing Miss Jen, she was iconic as ever and her tips are always great. Yes EJ needs an assistant, he is overdoing and because he has a lot of pressure, he does not enjoy his summer. By trying to be with Gina in the future, he doesn't enjoy the present moment with her.

The "I can't dance" song was soooo great, but I don't think it's a song I will listen in repeat. The choreography is the best part of it, so I can't really consider it as a 'song' but more as a 'performance'.

I loved Miss Jen saying to Kourt that when it will be the moment then she will be able to do it. And I really hope that we will see her climbing before the end of the season. It seems like Miss Jen cruise with Mr Bowen was great and I'm truly happy for them, even if I prefer her with Mr Mazzara.

I know this episode show us a lot of Rina's moments, but is it wrong if I say that even if they have great chemistry, I still want Ricky and Jet to be a thing?! Like, the scene at the beginning where Ricky says to Jet that he should do his best to help Maddox win, or the scene in the bungalow where Jet thanks him and Ricky says that Jet was a nightmare. I said it in the first episode and I will say it again but Ricky and Jet have great chemistry and their relationship is amazing. Them being more than friends is something I can really picture.

Gina's date for EJ was so sweet, I'm just sad that they weren't able to profit because EJ is too stressed. The scene really reminds me of Little Mermaid's 'Kiss the girl', and I was hoping for a moment like that... 🥺

What I loved the most in the episode was Ashlyn's realization. Her discussion with Miss Jen really helped her and the way she apologize to Val was so cute. And the way Val embrace her, and then Ashlyn is like "oh. I understand now", was great.

I really feel like Ashlyn's development is the thing I prefer in this season. I'm totally in for her to being sapphic, even I really love her with Big Red. I really want to see a discussion between them where Big Red is like "it's okay I don't care I still love you because you are amazing, and if you think you are bisexual then it's great!"

I also love Maddox and Jet, they are way more interesting that the love triangle because the more the season advances the more I am tired of this. I loved the discussions between Gina and Maddie and between Ricky and Jet. So great!

I don't really have anything to say about 'It's On', it's been weeks since we saw that and it was still very great to see it again. Like I already said, Yellow team deserved the win, Jet was amazing in this performance!

Ricky's idea is obviously to help Maddison and Maddox to be reunited again, and I really want to see Ricky and Jet scheming to help her coming to the prom!

And I'm pretty sure that this prom will lead to another break-up and I don't want it because Portwell can be really good together. It's just that because of Cash, EJ can't be the real EJ...

So yeah, great episode but I'm really sad that it will lead to Portwell breakup. 🥺

#hsmtmts #ej caswell #gina porter #portwell #ricky bowen #high school musical the series #ashlyn caswell #sapphic Ashlyn #Ashlyn x Val #jet hsmtmts #maddox hsmtmts

[rhysdarbinizedarby]

Comedy Festival 2012: Rhys Darby

The New Zealand International Comedy Festival begins this weekend bringing local and international comic heroes to our stages. Here, Rhys Darby talks about his forthcoming shows.

Your show in 10 words or less:

Autobiographical stories, jokes, physical theater and dance about the Armageddon.

Will we have heard any of the jokes before?

Not unless you're my wife.

Give us your best sales pitch. Why should we go to your show instead of saving our money for a big night out when Flight of the Conchords play in July?

I would be more angry with you if you missed the Conchords gig! If you can afford to see two shows this year, treat yourself to a night of Darby.

What is your pre-show ritual?

A group hug, a prayer, a seance, a quick game of Last Card and an energy drink.

Is dying on stage a rite of passage for a comedian or something to be avoided at all costs? It's definitely a rite of passage. It should happen at least once, even if you have to orchestrate it yourself.

Are members of the audience fair game? Or should they be treated with respect at all times?

They are paying customers and so as long as they show the artist respect then they should get it back "with bells on".

If you were a superhero who would you be?

Captain Awesome. I'd fly with a jet pack, travel through space and time and live in a volcano.

For those of you who don't have a musical aspect to your show ... how do you compete with all those clever dicks offering the double whammy of musical comedy?

I remember when musical comedy wasn't cool - the 1980s - when Roger Moore was James Bond. No one was getting away with "musical comedy" then. I try to take people back to that era.

Who will you be heading along to see during the festival?

As many shows as possible including Steve Hughes, Jamie Bowen, David O'Doherty and Terry Frisby. I'll also definitely be taking my kids to see the fabulous Mr. Boon!

From: New Zealand In: This Way to Spaceship When and where: SkyCity Theatre, 8pm, May 8-12

- TimeOut

Source: NZ Herald

#rhys darby #article #nz herald #comedy festival nz 2012

[daphnebowen]

hsmtmts season four episode four

Zac efron in baywatch is CRAZY BRO

richard Bowen: the French fry and the funnel cake

why does Mike suck at shopping? How do you buy cooking oil instead of tanning oil??? How do you do that???

HOW DOES RICHARD NOT KNOW MARY POPPINS ON SIGHT COME ON NOW Gina needs to educate him BADLY

”Ricky and Gina are just friends” yes Mike. Thank you for your input.

five nights in a row?!?!?!?!?!?

ricky is ranting to miss Jenn and Mike is crazy

MAKE GOOD CHOICES??? NO PROMISES??? What is he planning on doing tonight?!?!?!?

this song is really disturbing but also an absolute bop

spooky indeed…

okay I totally thought Ashlyn was going as ms Darbus too!!!!!! I never would have gotten Eleanor roosevelt??

”for the low low price of one of my cats for the day. That’s fine right?” No. No it’s not.

BATMANNNN I WANNA SEE JOSH DRESSED UP LIKE BATMANNN

” WOW YOU LOOK GREAT!!!”

”let’s get this starty parted!!!!!!!!! Nope wait let me come in again”

”Bowen as baywatch???” Honey you’re not the only one who’s confused this is too hilarious

“I’m scared 😟”

HANDSOME MR MAZARRA IS CRAZY

AND KOURTNEY JUST BLOWS RIGHT BY IT AS IF HER MOM DIDNT SAY ANYTHING AHAHAH

again, ten reasons why kourtneys mom is the best parent

”wait. You think mr mazarra is HANDSOME?!”

“dude. Can’t say that.”

mike. Mike Mike Mike. Why would you only get one bag of candy on halloween??? Have you never had halloween before???

the fact that Mack knows EVERYONES NAMES except for Ricky’s that seems blatant right there tbh like how does he know jets and not Ricky’s???

”g-force”

”wow guy! The one who almost ruined the take!” “Wow.” “Yeah, like that!” Ricky is so over Mack I swear

“oh good, spark is here.” “His name is mark and you know this” they said with fake smiles and wide eyes

”sister slayed the remodel” “indeed she did”

”you got it… buddy” the most unconvincing thumbs up ever!

gina trying to hide her mark and spark poster board but it keeps bouncing back PKEASE DONT BE FORESHADOWING

kourtney is SLAYING

Ricky mocking jet is DEFINITELY josh “gotta play it cool tonight bro”

”call. 9. 1. 1.” YES HELP KOURT NEEDS A COSTUME

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA RICKY SPITTING IN MACKS DRINK I CANT THE MOST OUT OF POCKET THING HE HAS EVER DONE seriously though I would literally do the same

”iS tHaT fAbRiC?”

”jetty’s got a cruuush!”

only candy, Michael? Omg he’s so dumbbbb it’s giving “its only a song” “a song can mean everything”

he got her a bottle cap?? Tacky.

he’s a little bit too full of himself.

asking “who is it “ ON HALLOWEEN BRUH like it’s definitely not gonna be little kids looking for candy which, by the way, you don’t have! 🤦🏼‍♀️

I wanna be called “cutie” :(

“bestie of the week” so degrading

omg this is so chaotic I can’t even Dani is like confronting Ricky about his costume and Gina is so confused and Ricky isn’t sure what to say… this is messy yall

RICKY JUMPING INTO GINAS ARMS AWW

omg Maddox is dying

“AS A FRIENDDDD” girl just admit it already she’s so shook

Mad and mad are… bad YES THEY ARE MADLYN FOR LIFE

NO SEBLOS IS NOT OVER FIGHT ME CARLOS

oh crap Mack why you have to go and say things like that

Ricky is so over it lmao the whole time Dani is talking he’s like “shut up shut up shut up” POOR GINA THOUGH

“Troy and Gabriella are characters, not a couple!!” - Kourtney

ricky: “well…”

”WHAAAAT???” The excited squeal is literally me every time something rina-y happens ♥️

the way Mack was like oh shiitake mushrooms and Dani’s look of astonishment - no, you two will not be cheating on each other with the best couple in history TODAY 😝

jet is a VIBE BRO- “I’m so glad this is out in the open, it was getting exhausting” honestly SAME

oh no. Gina’s mom. (She doesn’t deserve a name)

buddies. Always a bad sign 😳

richard just got friend zoned after him and Gina admitted they were a couple in front of all their friends. Oof. Can’t say I don’t blame him for running

”I like to dress up as Mary poppins and you like to give over the counter pharmaceuticals to children.” Yeah Jenn that’s probably a bad sign…

PREACH MISS JENN PREACH YOU AND MAZZY ARE WAY BETTER I think

i agree mike and miss Jenn got together way too soon after the divorce it was like BAM and idk how to feel about it

maddox’s hair looks so cute curly!!

lowkey wish Emmy and Jet would have gotten a duet

sharing songs with each other is literally the first step in any perfect relationship you can not prove me wrong

SEBBIEEE!!!! He really is a knight in shining armor

”not harder than you not talking to me!” Oh, um, think again… BOMBSHELLS

awww ash’s voice is so good

RINAS POLAROID PIC IS SO ADORABLE PLEASE

ashlyn and Maddox’s chemistry is honestly super good they are both absolutely gorgeous and can sing like no one’s business (but technically ash and big red are still together, right? So… wouldn’t Ashlyn be cheating if anything were to happen??)

pause. Richard. Please don’t break up with Gina. That would be the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. I have faith in you tho.

the way pumpkin guy awkwardly climbed thru the window

i still can’t believe Seb cheated

jarred is literally the worst at reading social cues like bro can’t you see Seb and Carlos are going through something over here? Take a chill pill and let them figure it out before you jump in ugh

hes not even that good looking either LMAOOO

Poor sebbie! But he shouldn’t have cheated imo

yes Ricky. Unleash all of your problems on miss Jenn. She will help you. She will use her magic powers and fix everything.

Ricky looks like he has a unibrow BAHAHA

yes miss Jenn call in those reinforcements

#hsmtmts #ricky bowen #ricky x gina #rina #gina porter #high school musical the musical the series #kourtney greene #carlos rodriguez #halloween

[redcloakedraven]

HSMTMTS REWATCH - TAKE TWO 1x6 Whaat Team?

Episode 5

Ricky vs Bowen Count: Ricky [4] Bowen []

This Episode: 1 (while talking to Gina)

Hair Ribbons: 1 (Nini)

You can tell they were taking advantage that they were aloud to laugh when Ricky came out with the wig

Nini has been pushing for Ricky to move on, but the moment she see's eve talk to a girl got jealous.

Ej's pants are to big for him and he's holding them up in the photo while jumping

"It's more like I felt like I had to get it." This goes back into what her tells her about being number 1 is the only reason to do something. Up to this point she kept pushing to be number 1 instead of just having fun and getting to know anybody. Then she got to know Ricky. Someone who is actually using the play as a safe place kind of like her and she feels okay enough to actually enjoy it now because she made a relationship with someone and feels more comfortable being able to relax a bit. Which EJ still hasn't reached. He's still very much I need to be the best and perfect (something his father totally put in his head).

EJ brings up not knowing the plan again. He likes knowing a plan and having one not only to know whats going on now, but so he can know whats going to happen in the future (which we see a lot more of in season 3). He's constantly thinking of wanting to know everything that's happening now so he can know what will happen later on. This could be an EJ thing or a senior thing, but it's still very much there. His senior year is very much pushing him to realize not everything goes as planned and this very much continues into the next season as well.

He's also questioning why everybody seems to be liking Ricky cause at this point he still blames him to an extent for ruining things and taken things away from him. Even after he takes credit for taking the phone, he blames the fact that he did this action on Ricky for making him paranoid

I still liked the acoustic version idea

Both Gina and Ricky taking their time leaving cause they don't want to leave.

Ricky trying his best to convince both of them that they still have the show and it's going nowhere. Gina bringing up Ricky doing the song is a way for them to stay back for longer, but also because she wanted to stay back as well.

The play not happening making EJ confess says a lot. It's the last thing he expected and truly seeing nothing going as planned is the thing that made him realize that him holding on so much to a certain part is ultimately useless at this point and he finally let it go along with the some of hate probably aimed at Ricky. Once he realized he can't really hold the role going to Ricky now because he thinks the show is officially over, it probably made him realize he can't really hold other stuff on Ricky either, so he properly apologizes and comes clean about some stuff as well. The play not happening is something he can't somehow spin onto Ricky.

Ricky catching himself again before saying everyone was like a family because he was in front of everyone, reminds me of his audition. He was doing well until the most vulnerable part came. I thinkhim speaking up might've gotten EJ to properly listen to him. I'm not sure in this particular scene

EJ looking over at Ricky though while his dad is talking definitely gets EJ to look at him differently. He talks about Ricky putting a lot of effort into the musical and up to this point I think EJ just kept ignoring and refusing to see that Ricky was taking it seriously. He also told Ricky that he should stop trying and acting because it was pathetic, maybe he was rethinking what he said to him in this moment as well. Either way it was the proper moment where EJ realized Ricky wasn't this evil mastermind he created in his head.

I really do enjoy Truth, Justice and Songs In Our Key

Ricky showing he's gotten better at dancing

Kourtney feeling it in the background with the speaker

Mr. Mazzarra finally notcing how talented the kids are.

Ricky's table jump

I just noticed that Miss. Jenn sang with them It was a simple "ooh yeah" moment but it was there

Nini getting jealous and looking a little hurt again seeing Ricky is interacting with someone else.

EJ looking over when he hears Gina talking to him. Him and GIna didn't have a lot of interactions and majority of them up to this point haven't gone well either. So I don't think he had feelings for her yet in this scene. He continues to look at Ricky after she leaves, he doesn't look extremely jealous or pissed off like he usually did when Ricky was around. The small jealousy is kind of there though if you want to interpret it that way. But his reaction is calmer kind of like when his dad was talking or when he looked at Ashlyn during Ricky's audition.

Ricky notices them both looking over when he finally looks in that direction and Nini looks behind her so I'm guessing it looked like Ricky was looking more at EJ. I seriously don't know how to take this scene unbiasedly so Imma just say it. TOTAL CASWEN MOMENT. This whole experience made EJ look at Ricky differently this could just be another moment like that. The song actually worked, but he already let go of the role and can see now that Ricky actually deserves it.

I like how Mike thanks Miss. Jenn for everything because he knows the musical really is the thing that I helping Ricky out right now.

#hsmtmts #ricky bowen #ej caswell #gina porter #ashlyn caswell #nini salazar roberts #portwell #rina #big red #carlos rodriguez #redlyn #seb mathew smith #seblos #caswen

[nightingaelic]

New Vegas companions reacting to the courier being mildly deaf?

Upon first meeting the courier, most assumed they were shy. They didn't make eye contact often, they just stared intensely at your mouth, as if trying to physically catch the words that were said. They naturally talked with their hands when they answered questions, but their movements were too animated to be merely emphasis. Most curiously, they avoided talking to anyone who covered their head with a helmet, head wrap or bandanna, and if they absolutely had to, they constantly asked the person in question to repeat themselves. If they were lucky, the confused individual would write down what they were trying to say. If they weren't, the conversation ended prematurely and the courier's face held a look of utter frustration and disappointment for hours.

It wasn't until the third or fourth time the courier ran afoul of a New Vegas Strip Securitron that told them to get out its way that their companion pulled them aside.

Arcade Gannon: "You can't hear them, can you?" Arcade asked, pulling them back from the street where the contingent of House's robots was rolling by.

"I... a little bit," the courier protested, putting a hand to their left ear. "Mostly out of this side. It's been ringing a lot lately, though, and normally I can compensate by just watching their mouth, but with robots..."

Arcade nodded. "You can't lip-read a bot. Sure. Why haven't you gone to the Followers yet?"

"For what?"

"An implant." Arcade furrowed his brow. "Dr. Usanagi has to have something in stock, or she could call in some favors out west and get one sent here."

The courier's hand moved upward again, to the scar that graced their hairline. "I don't think..."

Arcade's eyes widened. "Oh. Sorry. Yeah, that might make things... difficult."

Craig Boone: "Keep your eyes up," Boone said gruffly, after the courier picked themselves up from where the Securitron had tossed them after they failed to move quickly enough.

"I can't have my eyes on everything and everyone inside the Strip," the courier grumbled. "It's not my fault. There's enough people here today to drown out the feel of robot wheels on asphalt. And where were you, spotter?"

Boone softened, but less than an inch. "It might not be your fault, but it won't matter if the thing you miss is the thing that does you and your partner in. Don't lose track of House's muscle when you're in New Vegas."

"I wish they had muscles," the courier groaned. "Specifically facial muscles. It'd make things a whole lot easier."

"Let's do our business and get out of town quickly," Boone answered, giving everyone in the near vicinity a look of distrust. "Too many people means too many opportunities to miss something important."

Lily Bowen: "Is your hearing going, dearie?" Lily asked, clearly concerned at the prospect. "Grandma was lucky enough to keep hers, but plenty of her friends' hearing started to go after turning 60."

"I'm fine," the courier insisted, brushing their coat off. "It's nothing I can't handle or work around."

Lily thought for a minute as they removed the rest of the dust from their outfit. "You know, pumpkin, it's okay to need help sometimes."

The courier gave her a sour look. "Not in the Mojave, it's not."

"Even in the Mojave," Lily chided. "Some people are big and strong, like Grandma. Others are small and sneaky. Some people can't see, or can't walk, and some people can't eat or drink or go to the bathroom without help. Some people can't hear."

"Lily..."

"Listen to your grandma." Lily patted their head. "Some people need help, and they deserve it. Let Grandma help you watch out for robots, next time."

The courier sighed and looked up at her sadly. "Okay. But... you should think about taking your own advice, Lily."

Raul Alfonso Tejada: "Earth to Courier Six," Raul said with a chuckle. "Mr. House's minions don't have time to scoop you onto the sidewalk every time they roll through, you know."

The courier rolled their eyes and retrieved their pack from where it had fallen. "Chingate. And I don't have time to move out of the way whenever they need to break up a fight in Gomorrah."

Raul examined his fingers with mock interest. "Shame they don't speak the bridge talk you do. I don't know if their pequeñas garras could manage it, though."

The courier's eyes widened, and a smile grew beneath them. "Bridge talk? Never heard it called that, before."

"Eh, lingua franca, common-speak, whatever it's going by now." Raul waved his hand, then shot out a few quick signs: "man," "woman," "eat". "Don't know much of it myself, but I know it when I see it. Used to belong to the Plains tribes alone, and now it's everywhere."

"Everywhere except the Mojave." The courier made a face. "Why is that?"

Raul shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe they all got sick of being tossed around by robots, too."

Rose of Sharon Cassidy: Cass let go of the courier briefly to bang a fist on the side of the nearest departing Securitron. "Assholes! House can afford to be late!"

She grabbed the courier again and ducked behind a pack of tourists before the Securitron could pinpoint her. "Six, you have to stick by me," she insisted. "I know you're only firing on one cylinder in the sound department."

"I am fine," the courier insisted, wiggling out of her grasp.

"You are not." Cass seized them again. "I've known plenty of NCR vets who were discharged with heads full of nightmares, missing limbs and a lifelong case of tinnitus or no hearing at all. By my guess, you're somewhere in the middle of those last two, and I'll be damned if you get done in by a robotic security team after you had the gall to crawl out of your own grave and kick the leader of the Chairmen's ass."

"Well what do you want me to do, Cass?" the courier protested, their hands flying with the emotion. "No one here understands. Everyone else in the Mojave with hearing problems is too poor to wander around the Strip, or too dead to care!"

Instead of responding, Cass watched their fingers, making shapes. Shapes she'd seen before. Something clicked, and she reached out to grab their hands. "Plains talk," she said breathlessly.

"What?"

"Plains talk!" Cass was grinning. "My mom knew it. God, I'm stupid."

Veronica Santangelo: Rather than chastise the courier, Veronica watched them pick themselves up and make a series of angry motions with their hands toward the departing robots.

"You're talking," she said with wonder, when they finally turned back to her.

"Huh?"

"With your hands." Veronica imitated the last sign they'd made. "What does it mean?"

The courier blushed. "Um. Maybe don't make that sign in public, unless you're really, really angry at someone."

"Starting with swear words, as you always should when learning a new language," Veronica replied brightly. "Why don't you just use the sign language more?"

"Because, Veronica, people here don't speak it." The courier sighed. "You get English, Spanish, some tribal languages, but I've only met two people who knew the signs I know. I'm still not sure where it comes from. After I woke up in Doc Mitchell's office, I thought I was crazy for a bit. Like I had this whole, made-up language in my head that no one else could speak."

Veronica put a hand on their shoulder and squeezed it. "Teach me. We'll speak it together."

ED-E: ED-E had learned early on that beeping was no use with the courier, so it did the next best thing it could and gently bounced its dome off their shoulder and arms, tilting its speaker toward them with concern.

The courier, eyes brimming with tears, grabbed the eyebot in both hands and pressed their forehead to it, as if holding the face of a loved one. "I wish I wasn't like this," they muttered.

ED-E held still until their pain had subsided, and it floated close behind them when they arose and moved on.

Rex: Rex barked his anger at the departing Securitrons, then turned to look up at the courier and whine.

They ruffled the fur on his neck and crouched down to put their arms around him. "It's okay, buddy. You can't warn me every time someone big comes up behind me. Thanks for watching my back."

#fallout #fallout new vegas #fnv #fallout new vegas companions react #fallout new vegas companions #arcade gannon #arcade israel gannon #craig boone #lily bowen #raul tejada #raul alfonso tejada #rose of sharon cassidy #cassidy #veronica santangelo #ed-e #rex #deafness

[nagdabbit]

MY GIRLFRIEND'S COMMENTARY WHILE WATCHING HER FIRST AEW PPV

"my entire fitness goal is hook's shoulder-waist ratio, but with taz's extremely dense neck."

"the funniest thing about wrestling is that this fucking company is trying to make something called a stadium stampede sound both cool, AND serious."

gf: "if you cry listening to a crowd sing judas again, im divorcing you." me: "so that means youre gonna marry me." gf: "i've been bamboozled."

about brian cage: "this man is a huge dork. like, literally, i could fit me in him."

"i dunno what it is, but i would die to protect mr. hangman. he hunk, but he also baby."

thoughtfully, "i bet i could just catch you out of the air like that. i mean, i can squat you, i could probably even curl you like that, too."

because she is deeply in wrestling twitter now: "HOOK! babe, look, its hook! hook hive, rise up!"

"what i love about this feud is that all these men are fuckin' idiots. no brain cells, just shoes and fwiendship."

"what do you mean their tag team isn't just the wild boys, wtf? missed opportunity."

"those kicks are ugly, but i would steal them, too, honestly." *thirty seconds of silence layer* "for you, babe. i'd steal them for you, i mean."

"jon, no, the germs, jon, jesus christ, please dont drink that jon you dumbass."

"i love eddie, but i'm pretty sure we should never hang out. too much extremely new york energy, we would get arrested in like ten minutes. possibly less."

"diorsday device is the funniest shit ive ever fucking heard, how goddamn sad is that."

"max caster is gonna get murdered, but i love him."

"i wish bowens and his extremely attractive boyfriend the best in life."

"colt cabana and tay conti are tied for best smile in wrestling, but tay wins because i dont want colt to kick me in the face."

"penta is the only joker i formally recognize."

"today i found out that some people don't like stu and uno, and to them i say get entirely fucked."

after rush came out and i lost my entire shit: "i don't fully understand yet, but i support you." *one minute later* "oooooooooooohh. okay, yeah."

gf: "i enjoy that cody is pushing ogogo by being a dumb bitch with this america schtick." me: "you gonna say that when cody wins?" gf: "...fuck."

"ogogo got that guy ritchie movie ass music you love to see it."

"you were right about cody and i fuckin' hate it."

"aw yeah, its big boi season."

about miro: "i'm very gay, but the thing is, men with extremely jacked traps just do something to me."

"lance changed changed the color of his extensions and i appreciate that." *thirty seconds later* "are those... three crosses? tattooed on his back? jesus doesnt like murder, i don't think he likes murderhawks, either."

"britt baker is the only dentist i want in my mouth. no, wait, don't type that one!"

"oh, fuck, shidas getting teary i'm gonna fuckin cry, oh fuck, i get it now, i'm so sorry i made fun of you, i love her."

"oh fuck, shida knee me directly in the face."

"britt scares me. like the blood drip details on her gear are really cool, but i would legit believe its real blood from her."

"are you really crying about britt and the nice announcer man hugging?"

"hey, quick question, just real quick while ive got you here... why is the emo twink... like this?"

"darby's dad looks like my dad, and i'll never be okay with that."

"i like that darby just yeets himself around like that. he came in like a wrecking ball. a tiny, tiny wrecking ball."

"sting just tossing his son around the ring like that is very good, but, sir, that's bad parenting."

"the thing about sky and page is that these are the suburb guys i beat up at the beach on summer vacation. they have big "i robbed these guys at the pier" energy."

"damn, darby just feels his emotion with his entire face, doesnt he."

"okay explain the gambling thing and WHY it's a thing."

"orange rolling into the ring is so fucking good, that man is national treasure."

after me showing her the video of younger orange cassidy shitfaced and holding a fish for no reason: "i am shocked and appalled that you're only showing me this now."

after explaining the history of the jansport: "the range of this dumbass."

"i get that kenny is good and all, but his hair really fucks me up. it's upsettingly bad and i hope he knows that."

"pac is just. so much muscle. flippy beef man. a meateor." she did specify how to spell it for the joke because it was important.

"that man is a weeb, isnt he."

"something about a man breaking a hold by putting his hands in his pockets really gets me hype."

"fuck just murder omega and be done i hate this, put it on the beef man or the juicey boy already."

"babe, ill be right back i gotta murder this callis bitch."

screaming, "THAT'S MY FAVORITE REF, YOU UGLY FUCK!"

after kenny won: "i fucking hate wrestling, this is bullshit."

"holy fuck, babe, i forgot mark henry was a wrestle boy! i know him from the olympics!"

"hey, is mark henry bigger than large paul?"

"mjf is a dumb bitch and i love him."

"hey, quick question, who thought repelling down the stadium would look cool, they're so far away."

"there's wardlow, my sweet boy. this is cool now."

she laughed for a solid two minutes at tony schiavone saying, "here comes the little guy."

"i fuckin hate hager. kill him wardlow, kill that crispy maga ass bitch."

"okay what's with the chairs." *after a brief explanation of the chairshot heard round the world* "and, like, he can't just pick a new gimmick? it's been two years, bro. move on, shes not coming back."

"okay, i admit that this is great and i love it, kill that old man on the dancefloor."

upon learning this is technically the main event: "you mean it's over after this? theyre ending the show on THIS? not the triple threat match, this?"

"i just noticed mjf's bedazzled jeans, i'm not angry anymore, this is perfect."

"no, more wardlow. gimme the beef."

"christ, sammy guevara is kinda incredible and i'm fuckin angry about it. why cant inner circle be just sammy and santana and ortiz, fuck the other two."

"no, shut up! i refuse to sing along to this! whats wrong with you?! this is a bad song!"

#aew double or nothing #aew #all elite wrestling #brian cage #hangman adam page #jon moxely #eddie kingston #young bucks #the acclaimed #dark order #penta el zero m #anthony ogogo #lio rush #miro #lance archer #dr britt baker dmd #hikaru shida #darby allin #sting #orange cassidy #kenny omega #pac #tony schiavone #stadium stampede #bryce remsburg #wardlow #mark henry #shit my gf says

[multimetaverse]

did you see the new hsmtmts eps 8-12 synopsis?

Yes, it's good to know that there are actually 12 eps this season as Larry had said in an interview before S2 premiered that there were 11 eps. Also it doesn't look like we'll be seeing very much of rehearsals or the actual show? It may be covid linked but it does seem that the musical aspect of the series has been dropped somewhat this season. So it looks like we get the Menchies in 2x11 and we probably don’t get a regular school performance like we did in S1. I get that it’s largely covid’s fault but it is lame that we’re not gonna get much of an ensemble show for a couple eps as the show is at its best when it’s focusing on the found family aspect of the wildcats.

Looks like Gina meets Jack at the airport in 2x09 which fits with his character description saying he has wanderlust. Interesting that we see Lynne again (I just learned that Tim Federle named Mike and Lynne Bowen after his own parents who have been happily married for 40 years). Also cool that we’ll see E.J.’s dad. They’re kicking Howie and Kourtney into high gear which should be fun. Presumably Gina and Nini’s rising secrets are to some extent about Ricky which could suck especially since Nini was already jealous of Ricky and Gina being flirty and hanging out back in S1 so it could feel like retreading old ground. I wonder if Ricky’s unexpected facetime/party crasher he reevaluates will be Lily, she certainly seems interested in him. The Seblos fight would presumably be about their different financial backgrounds which could be interesting if handled correctly. 

There’s a lot that’s kept vague obviously or just not mentioned. Going by the 2x05 synopsis for example, we would have had no clue that it the Miss Jenn/Mazzara/Mike Bowen triangle would be an important part of it, or that E.J. would have his most substantial role so far this season, or that the show would finally circle back to Portwell. We have no mention of Antoine though we know he shows up next ep, nothing for Zachie Roy or Lily or North High in general, nothing of Miss Jenn or her many gentlemen callers. Extrapolating from the first 5 eps it’s likely that Rini break up or at least take break sometime later this season ( I believe there have been clips from various trailers from later eps that show Ricky without his necklace). The theme of second chances is clearly going to be important the last two eps, it’s mentioned in the 2x111 synopsis and is the title of 2x12. Does Nini try and get into YAC again or some song writing summer camp or something? Does Gina speaking her truth mean clearing the air with Ricky or with EJ? And is Mr. Mazzara showing a softer side to woo Miss Jenn or to help EJ or another student? So far S2 has been uneven but with 2x05 it finally seemed to find its footing so hopefully the 2nd half of the season will be even better.

#HSMTMTS #Rini #Seblos #Portwell #Ricky Bowen #Nini Salazar-Roberts #Gina Porter #EJ Caswell #HSMTMTS Asks #asks #Answered

[organic-guacamole]

205 SPOILERS (ignore if the points are out of order, I was sobbing so much I couldn't write it down in order😭)

My first thought when the episode started: "what in the horror movie-"

And then that shifted into "aw Seb's animals, Jimmy with social anxiety is my favourite"

Then at some point I'm thinking, "Zackey, with all due respect, shut up"

"Those hips never lie" ok Ms Jenn, there are children present.

Enough of this man's crusty face, lets talk about seblos holding hands in school.

And omg Carlos' locker is adorable.

Where can I get Seb's flannel though, that's the real question.

What is up with the sexual tension in this season-

First redlyn during the blackout and now Rini in the barn? y'all go to horny jail

Seb is adorable.

Gina what did you do-

She's scaring me, what happened that night???

The after the musical video calls we got were so ambiguous too. if they don't address this asap I will scream, it'll be just like them to drop this plot point and then forget about it.

Ricky.

Gina.

RICKY-

GINA-

WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT RICHARD???

YOU'RE NOT DATING, STOP DOING THAT

GINA OMG YEAH GO OFF ON THIS IDIOT BUT STILL IT WAS HYPOTHETICAL CALM DOWN-

Anyways.

Mike Bowen is hot.

I said what I said.

The ok boomer-

I cant-

"I WAS BORN IN THE 70S"

I love Mike

Mike really dressed up for this woman-

I must admit, the writing for the adults is very interesting imo. I genuinely want to see what's going to happen, who's she going to pick?

Mike? aka "her biggest crush in salt lake"

Benjamin? aka "her arsonist partner"

Zackey Roy? aka "her gay ex boyfriend"

*sniff sniff* What's that I smell?

Jealousy, jealousy following Benjamin Mazzara.

Honest Abe who?

I only know honest Seb.

But fr, how adorable is it that he can't lie to the people he loves, so he just keeps his mouth shut so he doesn't say the truth?

Seb is adorable.

how did ash and Biggie make all those pizzas in a few hours-

honestly-

I've said this before and I'll say it again,

Don't: make Kourtney and Howie a thing.

Do: make them both gay and best friends.

YAY EJ!!!

As someone in the hsmtmts discord server said, "Wait Matt Cornett is in this show?"

Round of applause for Gina's dance. Also it seems like we're shipping Gina and Kaden(platinum blond dancer for those who don't know) now....I don't make the rules🤷🏽‍♀️

Alright here's the moment we've literally all been waiting for:

The Seb seranade.

The way Seb was inspired by Carlos all those years ago made me tear up full on sob.

Who made those mean comments? Drop the addy, I just wanna talk.🔪

Me after the song finished: sobbing "CARLOS BABY GET UP THERE AND KISS YOUR BOYFRIEND"

Me when Carlos stood up: "ITS HAPPENING"

Me when Carlos hugged seb: "ROBBED, IVE BEEN ROBBED! IM CALLING THE POLICE THIS ISNT FAIR"

Me when they lean in again: "OK WAIT"

Me and the police officer when they finally kiss: jumping up and down squealing "FINALLY"

I'm a little bit upset someone's head was blocking half of it but still, it's been years so I'm honestly just glad they got to kiss on screen.

Seb is adorable.

So after all that, I was an emotional mess, shaking like a jackhammer and spamming the server, and when Carlos chooses Ms Jenn as his madrina....I FULLY LOST IT.

"I look like the clown from IT" girl I look like that every day and I don't even wear makeup-

The writers of this show really don't like us to be happy for more than 5 seconds huh? the proof is that EJ's only on screen for 5 seconds at a time

They really had all that emotion, just to slap us in the face with reality/Lily and Zackey's faces.

But like, is that allowed in the Menkies? To just steal the musical that another school already registered with?

And why don't they just try harder with the little mermaid instead of trying to sabatoge and take over the one thing east high has???

But I mean, go off ig.

EJ and Mr Mazzara is like, the duo I never expected, but already love so much. I can't tell if they're "bros" or if they have a father-son relationship. Either way, I hope we get a lot more of it.

EJ's so sweet to Gina in this episode but I don't like the way he looked at her near the end.

Like yeah I like portwell, but as friends. Ignoring for now the fact that Gina is 15 and EJ is literally 18, I don't want them to be anything more than friends because rn it just seems like they're the "leftovers" so the writers wanna couple them up and get it over with.

But please, no.

Gina really just said "lemme crush their little hearts even more, right at the end😁"

Honestly, I feel really bad for her. I totally get where she's coming from with everything. I still don't condone the way she's been treating Ashlyn, not at all, but I understand how she may be excusing it in her own mind.

#That may be my longest post to date whoops. #here's the tl:dr if you want #this episode was a rollercoaster #seb is adorable #SEBLOS KISS #Ms Jenn gets around #iykyk #EJ YAY #not much redlyn :/ #rini scares me #MORE EJ YAY #Benjamin needs some peanut butter for his jelly #how about we just start shipping Mike and Benjamin? #Mikezarra #hsmtmts #hsmtmts season 2 #hsmtmts s2 #hsmtmts spoilers #nini salazar roberts #ricky bowen #big red #ej caswell #gina porter #carlos rodriguez #seb mathew smith #ashlyn caswell #kourtney greene #ms jenn #seblos #guac's episode text blocks :)

[tabloidtoc]

Entertainment Weekly, June

Cover: The Pride Issue cover 3 of 4 -- Lena Waithe

Page 3: Contents, other covers featuring Lil Nas X, Mj Rodriguez, Bowen Yang

Page 4: Sound Bites

Page 7: The Cold Open

Page 14: The Must List -- In the Heights

Page 15: Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon, Iceage -- Seek Shelter, Ziwe

Page 18: Trying Q&A with Esther Smith and Rafe Spall, Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill

Page 20: Milestone Returns #0: Infinite Edition, In Treatment

Page 21: Brat: An '80s Story by Andrew McCarthy, The Empty Man

Page 22: My Must List Pride Edition -- Niecy Nash

Page 25: Pride 2021

Page 26: Lil Nas X -- the 22-year-old rapper is still breaking barriers one song and several clapbacks at a time

Page 29: St. Vincent -- the chameleonic singer-songwriter returns with Daddy's Home, an adventurous new album inspired by her father's prison time

Page 30: Olly Alexander -- after a lauded lead turn in It's a Sin, the artist returned with the single Starstruck, from his newly solo musical act Years & Years

* Rostam -- the new solo album from the multi-instrumentalist is rooted in society's fear of change

Page 32: Lena Waithe -- the producer and actor, and the new star of Master of None season 3, wants to create provocative art while elevating voices

Page 35: Josh Thomas -- the Australian creator-star of Everything's Gonna Be Okay is telling his story through his art

Page 36: Meet Your Maker -- Natalie Morales -- the queer star directs her first film(s), the sharp indies Plan B and Language Lessons. Here's what got her behind the camera

Page 37: Joshua Safran -- the man behind Alex Parrish's attitude and Blair Waldorf's one-liners shares how his sexuality helps him empathize with his characters

* Brandon Taylor -- coming off his explosive, best-selling debut novel Real Life, the lauded author is looking toward his second act and beyond

Page 38: Mj Rodriguez -- with the final season of the history-making FX drama Pose, it's leading lady is ready to claim what's hers

Page 41: Colman Domingo -- after decades of stellar work, the scene-stealer is front and center on Euphoria, Fear the Walking Dead, and more

Page 42: Auli'i Cravalho -- the star of Disney's Moana proved how far she'll go to be her authentic self, and is now focused on joy and inclusion

Page 43: Queen Supremes -- the international RuPaul's Drag Race winning class speaks power to the franchise's worldwide domination and looks ahead to a fab future

Page 44: Bowen Yang -- the Saturday Night Live breakout is defining funny for a whole new generation and pushing boundaries in the process

Page 47: Margaret Cho -- the stand-up comedian plays the lesbian pal we all wish we had in the comedy Good on Paper

Page 48: Molly Bernard -- after playing Younger's pansexual publicist, she's ready to explore the full spectrum of queerness

* Josie Totah -- from Disney's Jessie to the Saved by the Bell revival and Amy Poehler's Moxie, the actress has made a name for herself twice and Hollywood's paying attention

Page 49: Calendar -- 10 upcoming LGBTQ projects to get excited for --from eye-opening documentaries to sweeping romances, there is plenty to add to your Pride watch queue

* Pride season's 6 essential reads

Page 51: Summer TV Preview

Page 52: Loki with Tom Hiddleston

Page 53: Panic, The Celebrity Dating Game, Gossip Girl

Page 54: September Mornings, Schmigadoon!, Masters of the Universe: Revelation, Ted Lasso

Page 55: Heels, The Good Fight

Page 56: Power Book III: Raising Kanan

Page 57: Sweet Tooth, Blindspotting, Kevin Can F**k Himself, Mr. Corman

Page 58: We Are Lady Parts, Love Victor, Sex/Life, Turner & Hooch

Page 59: Physical, Hit & Run, American Rust

Page 60: Bosch, Marvel Studios' What If...?, Lisey's Story -- Q&A with Julianne Moore

Page 61: Calendar

Page 62: The Fast and the Furious oral history -- how did a little movie about underground racing speed off to become one of the most profitable franchises in history? The cast and crew reminisce about 20 years of Fast, one quarter-mile at a time

Page 68: News + Reviews -- Nominate Them, You Cowards -- on July 13, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences will announce the 2021 Emmy nominees. Here are some standout shows and performances we insist not be overlooked

Page 72: Movies -- Summer Star -- taking the lead in blockbusters A Quiet Place II and Jungle Cruise, Emily Blunt is the face of Hollywood's comeback summer

Page 74: Making the Scene -- Army of the Dead -- Zack Snyder explains how he bet big on destroying Las Vegas in his bloody zombie heist movie

Page 75: Oxygen, The Woman in the Window -- the journey from smash best-seller to star-studded streaming thriller was long and fittingly bizarre

Page 76: Meet the Fab G -- director Kay Cannon on how Billy Porter found a fresh, inclusive take on the fairy godmother in the new Cinderella

Page 79: My Favorite Shot Pride Edition -- Sebastian Lelio, A Fantastic Woman -- the Chilean director revisits a gravity-defying sequence in his groundbreaking Oscar-winning drama

Page 80: TV -- The Underground Railroad

Page 81: The Upshaws

Page 82: Oral History -- in 2011, Teen Wolf premiered on MTV. Ten years later, we look back at the pilot episode that introduced us to Scott, Stiles and the werewolves of Beacon Hills -- Jeff Davis, Tyler Posey, Russell Mulgahy, Dylan O'Brien, Crystal Reed

Page 84: What to Watch

Page 86: Music -- Miranda Lambert Q&A -- for The Marfa Tapes, Lambert decamped to the quiet artsy town in West Texas and recorded songs around a campfire. She talks to EW about the album and being an introverted superstar

Page 88: Ear Kandi -- Xscape member and current Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kandi Burruss reflects on the hits she's made for Destiny's Child, *NSYNC, TLC and more

Page 89: The Black Keys

Page 90: Books -- summer books special -- a comedy of eras -- in a sharp new essay collection, The Wreckage of My Presence, actor Casey Wilson weaves big feelings into even bigger laughs

Page 92: Poetic Justice -- prolific romance writer and political powerhouse Stacey Abrams bookend an incredible year with more thrills, this time in her first novel not written under her pen name Selena Montgomery

Page 93: Author Spotlight -- Silvia Moreno-Garcia -- Velvet Was the Night

Page 94: Fatal Attraction -- inside the intoxicating depravity of Animal, Lisa Taddeo's meaty follow-up to Three Women

Page 95: Critic's Pick -- The Great Mistake by Jonathan Lee

Page 96: Critic's Pick -- In the Country of Others by Leila Slimani

Page 97: The Conversation -- Taylor Jenkins Reid and Paula Hawkins -- the names behind Daisy Jones & the Six and The Girl on the Train are coming for your beach tote

Page 98: Q&A with Zakiya Dalila Harris -- The Other Black Girl, former book editor Zakiya Dalila Harris' genre-bending evisceration of workplace privilege, is set to become the debut of the summer

Page 99: Critic's Pick -- Afterparties by Anthony Veasna So

Page 101: Q&A with Billie Eilish -- in between winning Grammys and releasing her sophomore album, the pop star is publishing her first (self-titled) book, a collection of never-before-seen pics of her early life on the road

Page 103: Parental Guidance -- your crib sheet on the best entertainment for kids from toddlers to tweens

* Q&A with Gabrielle Union-Wade and Dwyane Wade -- the actress and her NBA legend husband, bring it on with their new children's book Shady Baby

Page 112: The Bullseye

#tabloid toc #tabloidtoc #pride #lena waithe #lil nas x #mj rodriguez #bowen yang #loki #loki the series #loki spoilers #tom hiddleston #hiddles #michael waldron #kate herron #loki variant #in the heights #trying #esther smith #rafe spall #niecy nash #st. vincent #st vincent #olly alexander #josh thomas #natalie morales #joshua safran #brandon taylor #colman domingo #auli'i cravalho #margaret cho

[inkbutterflyuniverse]

Sooooooo, I finished episode 4.

I... What... Who... How...

Just WHAT IS HAPPENING?!

It's episode 4 and it's already such a mess?

Spoilers below.

About Maddox and Ashlyn almost kissing: I glad they didn't. The song was very cute and I felt the alchemy, but it wouldn't be right. Ashlyn isn't talking to Big Red anymore, but it doesn't mean they broke up. Plus, he deserves to hear from her that she's bi and she likes Maddox. Even if he knows because he saw the documentary and saw the tension.

For Carlos and Seb situation. I was saying, less than an hour ago, that I didn't understand why Seb was so mad because it isn't him. Now I understand. But I don't like this situation at all. Seb CHEATED?! WOW, I didn't see that coming. I like that at least he told Carlos, because I had a situation where a friend cheated on her boyfriend, she told us because she felt guilty, one of the girl's boyfriend was the best friend of the guy who'd been cheated on, she let it slide to her bf who obviously talked his friend.

All this to say that I don't like when you learn it from someone else. You deserve to hear that you've been cheated on by the person who did it. And that's great that Seb did that.

But what's not great is what he said after. "If you had cheated on me it would be fine because we would have been equal". Like no?! It's worst. If the two part cheated then maybe it's a sign that you shouldn't try again? It's not a situation where you can erase it by cheating too.

Jared showing was so funny, I died of laughter. I don't know the guy, I don't really remember him, but I'm curious to see what could happen.

Miss Jen/Michael Bowen/Benjamin Mazara situation is coming to an end. I like that they actually talked like adults. Miss Jen and Michael were nice, but I wasn't very excited for them. As Ricky's dad said, he's still not over the divorce and it's normal. Miss Jen was a nice person to hang out with, but he isn't ready to take it to a step over casually dating. They discussed as real adults of their views on the relationship and decided to call it quit in the respect of the other. It's not something we see a lot on TV shows where everything is over dramatized.

I'm glad that Mr Mazara is still here, he was a great help to EJ when he was figuring out his future. Now he will help the other kids and him and Miss Jen will maybe have a chance!

Now, let's talk about the biggest mess. Mack/Gina/Ricky/Dani.

In what workd would Gina be happy about not being in the musical anymore when she literally said to Ricky that it was important to her and she wanted to do it?

I understand why Miss Jen called Dani, even though at the beginning I thought of Olivia (not Rodrigo, the other Olivia, the blonde. I don't remember her name), when Miss Jen said that maybe she needed a mentor I was like "it could be her", but then she talked about the hotel and obviously it was Dani. I would have appreciate seeing Lily (is that her name? It came to my mind like that), because honestly it would have been very funny. Ricky's ex-girlfriend that everyone hates coming back to be the lead in the musical. Very dramatic.

Anyway, it was sure it was going to be Dani, but I didn't think properly. I'm not a fan of the actress, I didn't really liked her voice in the Descendants party they've done for the third one, and her show about aliens wasn't for me. But from what we heard in the first episode, I think she definitely progressed, she was very great.

So the drama isn't really working for me... It was very predicable that Ricky and Gina would have problems due to the two new people. Of course Mack wants a fake relationship to promote the film. (Even though I'm not sure about his examples, especially the Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, weren't they really dating at the time? And didn't she cheated on the Snow White set, or something like that? Anyway, not important).

I understand Mack, he's a child star, that's all he knows, and faking a relationship isn't a bad idea because people have a tendency to ship co-stars when their chemistry is good.

I also understand Dani, she was expelled from the movie and now it's her chance to do something. She's also a star so of course she would be dramatic about Ricky not telling.

Now about Gina and Ricky. WHY IS RICKY RUNNING AGAIN?! He constantly says that he changed, but it's the same. Gina didn't told her mom and he's angry and wants a pause? Like wtf dude, I'm sure you know Gina's situation with her mom? And even if he doesn't, he said before that Gina's mom wouldn't be happy with him being here (so not about sneaking but being here), so he knows that she doesn't really like Gina having her boyfriend at home which was exactly where he was, even if there was people.

Gina didn't told her mom for a reason, and even if she wanted to talk about Ricky, isn't really the middle of a party the right time? "Oh yeah Mom, do you remember when you said that I shouldn't have a boyfriend to concentrate on my studies? Funny because ahahaha surprise, it's Ricky and he's my boyfriend." I could easily turn into an argument and it's not something you want to happen at your party.

So just why is Ricky running and not letting her a chance to explain to him? I get that he's jealous of Mack, but the running situation is annoying. If you run for something so little, I can't imagine what it will be next time something bigger happen?

#high school musical the series #hsmtmts #rina #hsmtmts season 4 #hsmtmts spoilers #hsmtmts 4x04

[myriadism]

Unrelated to Anything here is an unordered out of context list of some of my OCs

Serendipity: she's a time traveling universe hopping bombastic linguistic extraordinaire. It's all a long story

Cara Whittaker: runs a Bed & Breakfast out of a "halfway house" which exists halfway in reality and halfway out like some sort of horror movie house, but this one isn't evil its just sentient and magical and and always trying its best to be any world's most comfortable Safehouse. Cara is one of many house caretakers operating a single wing, and also Serendipity's adopted sister.

Birdie: a cute kid who only speaks with eerily accurate impressions of birdsong. May be some sort of child god? Unclear.

Rowanna: a Raven. Literally just a bird with all the powers of a bird. Apparently she used to be a human sorceress and warlord tho, and was long ago cursed and trapped in this useless bird form. Has likely committed several war crimes but it's cool cause she's just a raven now. Don't @ me abt Sandman or Harry Potter or anything please I know nothing about blackbirds is original anymore

Christina Carls: a US or Canadian swimmer aiming for Olympic medals 🏅 who has her dreams completely derailed by unexpectedly turning into a mermaid. It doesn't help that mermaids and their magical underwater society don't even exist anymore for unknown mysterious reasons...

Cy: he's a bit of an asshole but damn if he isn't real good with computers and math and practically everything else (except for not being kind of an asshole sometimes but he has really good reasons I promise!) no relation to Cy Twombly the abstract expressionist painter or a Mr Darcy I keep hearing about

Becca (Rebecca) Sharrd: companion to the 11th Doctor on "Doctor Who" because everyone just has to have at least one or several DW (self)inserts. A recent library sciences graduate in Chicago, IL with social anxiety and depression she runs into the Doctor when he literally runs into her with his wacky giraffe-man body chasing an alien through Millennium Park. As is typical, things get weirder from there. On the plus side tho- it seems like many less humanoid aliens are so uncanny valley it completely bypasses most social phobias and gets right into xenophobia! Wild. The human brain sure is an extraordinary 3 pound bowl of fuckin soup innit?

Sara "Renae" Diaz: this is actually just Serendipity again whenever she needs to have an official ID and not some sort of hippie name

Celyn Bowen: a welsh genderfluid part-time Witch, part-time historian. Living in the DC comics universe, specifically the continuity of that really good animated show "Young Justice". His/her great great something grandma is Elaine of Garlot in the Welsh and Arthurian Myths. Oh? you've never heard of Elaine? well she may have been historically upstaged by her sister, Morgan le Fay. Celyn also ends up in a bit of a body timeshare situation with an extremely ancient and powerful helmet possessed by Dr Fate.

Nadine: one day Nadine rolls over in bed and wakes up on the ceiling. She's read too much Franz Kafka and now gravity pushes her up instead of pulling her down to earth. She's a physicist so this is really embarrassing.

Tyto Alba: you know how everyone loves werewolfs? Well Alba isn't a werewolf, they're a barn owl. And they weren't bitten by a were-owl or anything, that's ridiculous and also doesn't exist in Ty's world. No it's all Shapeshifters. Two forms, mostly human and various other species (cause humans are the most common animal to get really into the whole shapeshifting vibe those wonderful weirdos). But there are also many so-called "non-sentient" animals of all stripes and spots who are shapeshifters and Tyto Alba came from a nest of 'em. Father was a Barn Owl - Mongoose and mother a Barn Owl - Cormorant, they lived by a fertile waterway you see, and liked to fish.... but somewhere back in the history of Alba's genes intertwined with shapeshifter magic was a human being. Because one day as Ty was living their bucolic owl fledgling little life, they spontaneously turned into a human child, and all hell breaks loose. Talk about a coming of age story.

Sarah Day, Lady Luc, Porter, Lucien, various etc... these are also just Serendipity again. Look, it is not that weird to have a lot of names when you end up going to a lot of different places where people speak different languages and also may try to shoot you for taking their money in an ad hoc wealth redistribution plan--- don't judge

#my ocs #feel free to ask me about any of these #but just be aware there is No Book #and no books upcoming #i just have a big ol Imagination