Story Title: 'My Best Friend's Boyfriend'.

Rating: T

(Language and Un-graphic Romance.)

Full Summary: Sharpay Evans and Gabriella Montez are best friends forever, they have been since they were toddlers. Gabriella is dating the school's number one heartthrob and jock, Troy Bolton- they've been dating for three years. Sometimes, Sharpay tags along on 'Troyella's' dates, and neither Gabriella or Troy seems to mind. But what happens when Sharpay seems to spend a little too much time around the couple? Troy suddenly begins to feel attracted to Sharpay, because he sees her almost as much as he does Gabriella. Sharpay is just always around. Troy tries to make these sudden feelings for his girlfriend's best friend go away, but he just can't. After a while, Sharpay catches the vibes that Troy is giving her- and she's able to figure out that Troy likes her. She's always thought of her and Troy as good friends- they've known each other since kindergarten, but they've never liked each other like that before. Sharpay begins to feel very awkward around Troy- and tries to avoid him now as much as possible. But then, much to her dismay, Sharpay begins to get sudden feelings for Troy as well. Yikes! Now both Troy and Sharpay have major attractions to each other. Troy doesn't know that Sharpay likes him, and he doesn't know that Sharpay knows that he likes her. What will happen now? Is Gabriella standing in the way of the 2 love-sick teens? Troy doesn't want to break Gabriella's heart, and Sharpay doesn't want to hurt her best friend. Troyella/Troypay and SharpayxOC It's a MAJOR love triangle…

Who will Troy end up with?...

Chapter One – The Red Heat.

"Hey Brie, want to hit the Red Heat tonight?" Troy Bolton asked his girlfriend of three years- Gabriella Montez.

"That one dance club?" Gabriella asked. She, Troy, and her best friend Sharpay Evans were walking down the hallway of East High School to their first period class.

"Yeah." Troy replied. Gabriella hesitated.

"I don't know…I've got a lot of homework to do…"

"School hasn't even started for the day yet! And besides, it's Friday…" Troy laughed.

"Well, I know I'm going to have a lot of homework- you know how the teacher's here are…"

"Oh, come on Gabby! Live a little! You concentrate way to much on your grades, why not lay low and have some fun for once? You'll have all weekend to do your homework!" Sharpay told her friend- she'd been listening in on the whole conversation.

"Oh…alright." Gabriella finally agreed after being persuaded into it- Sharpay could get her to do anything, she could be intimidating at times- and she wouldn't take no for an answer. But that's just the way Sharpay had been her whole life.

"I wonder why it's called the Red Heat anyway…" Gabriella wondered out loud.

"Haven't you ever been there before?" Sharpay asked. Gabriella shook her head 'no'. Sharpay laughed.

"Haha- well, it's because everything in there is red- the tables, chairs, the ceiling, the floor, even the speakers! all the lights are like, red lights to. And they flash- the lights flash. It's so fun there!!!"

"Is the music loud?" Gabriella asked again. Sharpay gave her a 'duh-what-do-you-expect?-it's-a-dance-club!' type of look.

"I don't handle booming music very well…Troy, have you ever been there?" Gabriella asked Troy.

"No, not yet. I've never really wanted to-until now. Shar, when have you been there?"

Sharpay shrugged.

"I've only been there once- with Zeke, last year when we were dating. Haven't been there since…but you know, I've wanted to. I've just never had anyone to go with…" Sharpay raised her eyebrows at Gabriella and Troy- it was obvious that she was hinting that she wanted to accompany them on their date.

"Hm…would you like to come with us, Shar?" Gabriella asked her best friend with a small smirk. Sharpay clapped her hands together happily.

"Well, if you insist…" She replied casually after her clapping fit. Troy laughed- Sharpay could be a real spaz sometimes, but it was funny. She was one of his closest friends that were a girl- aside from Gabriella, of course. Gabriella was glad that Troy and Sharpay got along- it made her happy, because she'd never dated anyone that Sharpay didn't approve of- and that was rare.

Before Gabriella began to date Troy, way back in the eighth grade, most of the boys Gabriella liked- Sharpay would look at them and be like 'Oh no! You are WAY to good for him!!!' it was just one of those 'powers' if you will, that Sharpay had- she could always just tell when and when not someone was 'boyfriend material'. Gabriella wouldn't have survived middle school- or even High School without Sharpay there to back her up, and she was very thankful for that. Sharpay had approved of Troy for Gabriella right away- mostly because they already knew Troy and had since kindergarten.

"So, I'll pick you up at 8:00 then, Brie?" Troy asked Gabriella.

"8:00. Okay- that sounds good."

Troy turned to face Sharpay.

"And we'll both be picking you up at 8:15?"

Sharpay nodded.

"Are you going to try and find a date for tonight, Shar?" Gabriella asked- raising one eyebrow.

"Nah- I'll meet plenty of cute guys at the club!" She laughed. Sharpay had stayed single ever since her breakup with Zeke over the summer- and it was now the middle of January. The breakup really seemed to affect her- because she had been with Zeke for three years. That was her longest relationship ever, which was probably why.

Neither Sharpay nor Zeke never really told anyone what happened, but it must have been pretty bad- because Sharpay wouldn't even tell Gabriella the reason why they broke up.

It just wasn't like Sharpay to remain single for so long- ever since second grade, she was one of those girls who couldn't go two weeks without having a boyfriend- she wasn't a slut or anything, she was still pure…but she always had a boyfriend. Which is why Gabriella was really curious to why she hadn't dated anyone- not one single person since over the summer. Sure, Sharpay would see a guy and think he was cute- and do some harmless flirting, but it never turned into a relationship. She just couldn't seem to let go of Zeke, even thought she had dumped him- that was the one and only thing that she DID tell Gabriella.

Sometimes, Gabriella stopped to think about why Troy and Sharpay had never dated- they had always been the two most popular boy and girl all throughout their school-years, but they had always just been friends. It wasn't like Gabriella wanted the two to date- because she and Troy were now dating, the thought was just a curiosity thought to her. She'd even asked Sharpay that question once before- in the seventh grade, before she began to go with Troy. But Sharpay just laughed and told her that she loved Troy like a brother, and could never see herself dating him. It was a year later that Troy had asked out Gabriella.

Sharpay and Gabriella were complete opposites- Gabriella was shy, quiet, and way focused on school. While Sharpay was outgoing, loud, and was pretty care-free when it came to school. (Sharpay's report card is all B minuses or C's.) But you know what they say, opposites attract- in both friendship and relationship ways.

"Can Ryan come to? I think it's time HE met some girls!" Sharpay asked Gabriella and Troy- referring to her twin brother who hadn't had a girlfriend for over a year.

"Yeah, he can come to!" Gabriella said, Troy nodded in agreement.

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Sharpay, Gabriella, and Troy were all sitting at a small table in the back of the dance club. Ryan had wandered off some time ago to go play some pool. Troy and Gabriella had danced a few times, but then Gabriella began to get a headache from all the flashing red lights and loud music and had to sit down. Sharpay had also danced a few times to- mostly by herself, but she really didn't seem to mind. At one point Troy offered to dance with her because he felt sort of bad for her- and she had looked at Gabriella as if asking for permission, and Gabriella told them it was fine. Sharpay was having a great time- but came and sat down with Troy and Gabriella anyway- wanting to make sure that Gabriella was okay. The three of them were talking about the Valentine's dance at school that would be in a month, when a boy that looked about their age came up to Sharpay.

"Excuse me?" He asked Sharpay.

"Yes?" She replied- arching an eyebrow curiously.

The boy grinned goofily and held up one of his fists- which was carrying a little bit of sugar.

"Yes, did you drop this? It fell out of your hair."

Sharpay noticed that the boy's pockets were stuffed with empty little packets that contained sugar for coffee.

"Thank you, but I'm really not interested…" She replied with a smile. Out of all the lines boys had tried on her- this one was actually not bad, but she really wasn't interested in this boy though. It wasn't that he wasn't good-looking or anything, she just didn't feel very flirtatious right now. The boy sighed and let the sugar fall to the floor.

"You sure you don't want to dance? You look pretty bored over here…"

Sharpay hesitated.

"What's your name?" She asked him.

"Darren, you?"

"Sharpay."

"I like that name- Sharpay." He said with a smile. (A/N: Darren is played by Jared Murillo.)

"Who are your friends?" he asked- gesturing to Troy and Gabriella- who were covering their mouths with their hands to keep from laughing.

"This is Gabriella and this is Troy." Sharpay replied- shooting the couple a glare.

"Nice to meet you." Darren told them. They nodded.

"Likewise." Gabriella said.

"So, last chance- do you want do dance?" he turned his attention back to Sharpay- who was reconsidering.

"Well-"

"Look man, she said no. And no means no. You got that?" Troy snapped at Darren- standing up. He clearly couldn't take the hint. Darren held up his hands as if to protect himself and took a step back.

"Hey hey whoa! Sorry dude- I didn't think you were her boyfriend, my bad…"

Sharpay, Troy, and Gabriella all gasped in unison.

"No way! Troy's not my boyfriend! He's Gabriella's boyfriend!" Sharpay assured him.

"Oh- sorry." Darren muttered.

"Troy, you can calm down." Sharpay told Troy.

"Sorry." Troy murmured sitting back down. He was very protective of both Sharpay and Gabriella. With Gabriella, of course it was because they were dating. With Sharpay, it was like a brother-sister protectiveness.

"Anyway, okay, I could actually use a dance right now- I still have a lot of energy. Are you going to be okay, Gabs?" Sharpay shot Gabriella a concerned glance.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll have Troy here with me, go and have fun!" Gabriella said waving a hand at her- shooing her away to go and dance with Darren.

"Okay…" Sharpay answered. Darren motioned for her to follow her to the dance floor. Sharpay hesitated at first- glancing back from Gabriella to him, but then walked away from the table and onto the dance floor.

The song changed from 'Stronger' by Kanye West to 'Low' by Flo-Rida and T-pain literally the second Sharpay and Darren stepped onto the dance floor.

"Oh I love this song!" Sharpay exclaimed, Darren laughed. They stood in front of each other and began to move to the beat.

"SO, WHAT SCHOOL DO YOU GO TO?" Sharpay had to shout to be heard over the music.

"WEST HIGH. WHAT ABOUT YOU?" He shouted back.

"EAST HIGH."

"OOH- RIVAL SCHOOLS, EH? WELL I DON'T WANT TO BE YOUR RIVAL!" Darren winked at her. She giggled and could feel herself blushing- luckily, it wasn't noticeable since the whole club was flooded with red flashing lights anyway.

Back at the table, Gabriella and Troy were watching Sharpay and Darren dance.

"I wonder if she's going to click with that guy…she seems to be having a good time!" Gabriella said.

"Yeah…she's already danced with a couple of guys, but she really seems to be having fun with this one!" Troy agreed.

"Come on- let's dance!" Gabriella cheered enthusiastically- jumping up from the table.

"Are you sure? Did your headache go away?" Troy asked her.

"Yeah I'm fine. Now come on, Low is my ring tone, I want to dance!!!"

"Okay!"

Sharpay was having an even better time now then she already was, and if she did say so herself- Darren was a very good dancer. The chorus to 'Low' echoed through the Red Heat, and then the song was over. It immediately switched to some random disco song that she'd never heard before.

"WHOA- THAT WAS SOME DANCING, I'M ALREADY BEAT AFTER ONE SONG- I'M GOING TO TAKE A BREATHER, OKAY?" Sharpay told Darren. He nodded.

"COMING WITH?"

"SURE"

They walked over to the table where Troy and Gabriella were just minutes ago. Sharpay was surprised to find the table empty- they must have been on the dance floor.

"Want me to go get us a soda or something?" Darren offered.

"Sure!" Sharpay smiled. He walked away from the table and returned a few minutes later with two cokes.

"Did you come here with anyone?" Sharpay asked- gratefully taking a sip of her coke.

"Yeah- my friend Brad and his girlfriend Shay. You know- sometimes it sucks to just be the third wheel. That's why I came to find someone to dance with. It's a good thing I found you." He winked again.

Sharpay nodded and smiled.

"Yeah- I know what you mean. I came here with Gabriella and Troy. Well- and my twin brother, Ryan. But he walked off somewhere like an hour ago. I tag along on a lot of Troy and Gabriella's dates- they really don't seem to mind though." She shrugged and took another drink of her soda.

"You have a twin? I've always wondered what it would be like to have a twin…" he took a sip of his own coke.

"Yeah, but he doesn't get out much. I had to practically beg him to come here tonight. He needs to be more social…"

Darren just nodded his head in an understanding way.

"So, tell me a little more about yourself." He then said.

"Well…I love theater. It's my top hobby- singing especially. I'd also like to try acting someday. My favorite color is pink, and I love to shop. I guess that pretty much sums it up!" She laughed.

"What about this…Troy-boy that you introduced me to, he seemed to flip when I asked you to dance…"

"Well, Troy just has this protective brother-sister thing with me. But like I said, he's dating Gabriella. It's really not that big of a deal, he's just sort of weird like that."

"How long have you known him?"

"Practically my whole life- kindergarten, to be exact. We've always been friends- but we've never been interested in each other or anything." She added that last part in because she figured that was the next thing Darren was going to ask.

"Anyway, enough about me. I want to hear about you now!" Sharpay said.

"Well, I-"

"Hold that thought!!!" She interrupted him as 'Kiss-Kiss' by Chris Brown came blasting through the speakers. She grabbed Darren's arm and dragged him back onto the dance floor.

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Troy and Gabriella were dancing like crazy to 'Kiss-Kiss' when Ryan came up to them.

"HAVE YOU GUYS SEEN SHARPAY?" He shouted.

"UM…YEAH ACTUALLY- SHE WAS WITH SOME GUY NAMED DARREN LAST WE SAW HER- ABOUT TEN OR TWENTY MINUTES AGO." Troy shouted back.

"WELL, IF YOU SEE HER TELL HER I'LL BE HANGING AROUND THE POOL TABLE WAITING FOR HER- I WANT TO LEAVE! ARE YOU GUYS READY TO GO SOON?"

"YEAH- WELL NOT QUITE, HOW ABOUT HALF AN HOUR?" Gabriella compromised.

"ALRIGHT." Ryan turned on his heel and walked back to the pool-tables- while having to walk around several dancing couples. Kiss-Kiss ended and 'Long Way 2 Go' by Cassie came on.

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"…Okay, now as I was saying, I'm seventeen, and my interests are football and that's basically it. I live for football- my dad is the football coach at West High, so he pretty much over works me at it." Darren said when he and Sharpay sat back down at the table after continuously rocking out to 'Kiss Kiss' and 'Long Way 2 Go'. They were both completely out of breath and hot.

"Ooh football- well, I love a tough guy. But, no offense really- you don't look like much of a football player…"

"Yeah, I really don't have the body of one- but I'm the quarterback of my school."

"Wow! Impressive!" Sharpay exclaimed. Darren chuckled.

"Maybe you can come and watch me play sometime? And maybe I'll come sometime to watch you perform in a musical or something?..." This was a hint that he wanted to see her again.

"Alright, I think that's a fair deal!" She giggled. He was making her blush like crazy.

"Just to make things clear, do you have a boyfriend?" He asked hesitantly.

"No- I got out of a tough relationship over the summer, I haven't dated anyone since. Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No. I actually don't- my life is to focused on football, it actually gets tiring after a while. I fact, I had to sneak out to come to the club tonight. My dad would blow up on me; he wants me home practicing my passing right now."

"Ouch. Tough dad, huh?"

"Yeah. He's going to kick my ass when I come home tonight. But…I think it's worth it…"

"And why is that?"

"Because if I hadn't sneaked out, I'd a never met you." He grinned and winked- for the third time that night. And Sharpay then blushed- for the 1000th time that night.

"Darren! Dude we've been looking all over for you man!! Coach just called my cell phone- he said you don't have yours and he figured I'd be with you. He's completely pissed man! You'd better get home now!" A boy who looked about seventeen came running up to Darren and Sharpay. A girl who also looked about seventeen was following close behind him.

"Uh…Sharpay, this is my friend Brad, and this is Shay." Darren said gesturing to his two friends.

"Nice to meet you both!" Sharpay told them.

"Yeah whatever- anyway, come on we have to get the hell out of here!" Brad shouted.

"Sorry, you have to excuse Brad's manners- well he really doesn't have any." Shay told Sharpay- laughing as if she'd just made the best joke in the world. Sharpay laughed to, just to be polite even though it really wasn't that funny.

"I guess this is goodbye- for now, anyway…" Darren said to her.

"Here, put your number in my phone." Sharpay pulled out her pink sidekick and handed it to him.

"Oh yeah- here, put yours in mine." He pulled out a black iPhone and handed it to her.

"Wow- fancy phone!" Sharpay laughed teasingly.

"Haha- well, yours is to!"

"I thought you forgot your phone at home?" Shay asked Darren.

"No, my dad is just stupid and probably mistook his own phone for mine!" he laughed. He punched in his number on Sharpay's sidekick and handed it back to her, she did the same with his.

"I'll see you around then, it was nice meeting you!" He flashed her a handsome smile.

"Back at ya." She gave him a warm smile and waved.

Darren turned back to his friends and they ran out of the club- leaving Sharpay alone at the table. She wasn't alone for long though, because then Gabriella and Troy came trotting back.

"Hey! I haven't seen you two in like an hour!" She said by way of greeting. They groaned and lazily each fell into a chair.

"God! I am exhausted!!!!!" Gabriella exclaimed.

"Seriously- we should go now!" Troy said. He did have a great time with Gabriella, but he was WAY tired!

"Okay, let's find Ryan and then leave." Sharpay agreed.

"He said he'd be waiting over at the pool tables." Troy said

"'Kay, come on!"

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"So you never told me what happened with you and that one Derek guy!" Gabriella told Sharpay when they were on the phone.

"Haha, for one, it's Darren. For two, you didn't ask!"

"Well, I'm asking now! So, spill!!"

"Nothing really happened…we danced to a few songs and then chatted a little bit. He goes to West High. He's the quarterback of the football team."

"Impressive! Are you going to see him again?"

"Well, we exchanged numbers. I want to see him again- he's actually very sweet. I think this one might be worth it…you know what I mean?"

"Aww! I'm so happy for you- you need to get back in the dating game!"

"Yeah…so, did you and Troy dance a lot? Obviously…because I didn't see you two around much after I went off to dance with Darren."

"Yeah. We did. And I'm happy to say that I made it out of that club alive!!!"

"Haha. Well, it's like midnight, and I'm tired. So I'm going to get some shut-eye. A girl needs her beauty sleep!"

"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow- let's hit the mall. They're having a major shoe-sale!"

"Really? Whoa- I didn't even hear about that, what's the occasion? And I thought you said you'd have a lot of homework?"

"I don't know- just one of those mid-month things I guess. And well, shopping is one of my few exceptions to my homework policy! Anyway, pick me up at noon?"

"Okay. See ya tomorrow, Gabs!"

"Later!"

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Author's Note: So, there's chapter one! I really don't know how this idea for a story came to me- it just sort of popped into my head! And just to inform you all, 'The Red Heat' is NOT a dance club that I made up on my own, it's a fictional dance club, but I copyrighted it from the book 'Haunted' by R.L Stine. So, for all you Troypay fans, don't give up on me now-just because Sharpay is taking an interest in Darren and because Troyella is real at the moment. There will be more Troypay laterrr on, but for now I just need build up. Alrightie? I'm a Troypay supporter myself:D

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! And please review!

-Serena/ HeSaidSheSaidx