Here is a new one. A bit of a warning...I think it sucks. It's a new begining though. Tell me what you think in the end.

Water bottles, check. Quart sized bags, check. Ear plugs, check. Crying little girl, check?

Jack Bolton was currently in a Wal-Mart outside of Los Angeles. He glanced at the little girl, probably around the age of five, and didn't know what to do. He hadn't talked to a five year old in a really long time.

"Are you ok?" He asked her gently. He couldn't see her face, rather just the light brown curls on her head. She had her head in her knees and was rocking slightly.

"I want my daddy." The little girl stated, through the tears, and kept her head in her knees. She knew her parents had told her to never speak to strangers but she was scared.

Mr. Bolton had no idea what to do. He was on vacation in a state a million miles away from his home. LA was the biggest city he had ever been to. And he had never seen this little girl in his life.

However, he used to have a son of his own. Note the past tense. He had disowned his son five years ago, when Troy decided to run off with just a note that said:

I needed a break from it all. I am leaving. I may come back, I may not; it all depends on where the road of life takes me. I am an adult. I just graduated college. I am pretty sure you don't need to worry about me. Or Gabriella, cause she's with me. No mom, we are not having a huge white wedding at our church. No dad, I'm not going to have a career in anything sports related. No parents, we aren't going to have 2 kids and a dog. We are going to live our life. We don't even want to get married right now. We don't want to live here. We just want to go. We just don't want the plain domesticated lifestyle anymore. Hopefully you understand. Love, Troy.

A note, and his only son was gone. At first, he thought it was a joke. But when Maria Montez called his wife crying, he knew it was no laughing matter. He was so angry. The Montez family and the Bolton family had sworn that if their children decided to come back, which they hadn't, then the parents wouldn't speak to them. They would cut off all connections.

Although, deep down, everyone knew that the couple was terribly missed.

"I'll help you find him," Jack signed. He couldn't just leave this little girl stranded in the middle of a random Wal-Mart, "what's your name?" The girl finally looked up, showing the man her bright blue eyes.

"Elizabeth." The girl said in a quiet voice. Jack bent down and went with instinct.

"Who took you to the store today?" She twirled a strand of brown hair around her finger, like she always watched her mother do when she was nervous, "I promise I won't hurt you."

"My daddy did." She whispered. Jack sighed and looked at the girl. He was about as nervous as she was. He hadn't been responsible for a little girl since he babysat Gabriella Montez, almost 23 years ago.

"What is his name?" He asked slowly. This little girl was lovely and seemed to have pretty wealthy parents by the way she dressed. She had designer clothing and was very well kept up. Yet, she didn't seem like a spoiled brat.

"Daddy," The little girl stated as if it were a well known fact. Jack sighed, forgetting momentarily that he was talking to a little girl.

"Ok…where did you last see him?" Elizabeth thought for a minute. She seemed more comfortable now that she realized that this man was helping her find her father.

"Well, we was getting diapers for my brother, Alex, and then I wanted to go look at the toys and Daddy was talking to Mommy about which ones to buy. So, since he didn't say no…I went to go to the toys. Then, when I came back, he was gone." Jack tried to catch the whole story. So, the man was last seen in the diaper isle.

"So, uh, what else did your dad need to get?" Jack asked slowly, hoping to get any hint from the little girl, "or was that all?" She put a finger to her chin and thought for a moment. Jack frowned, that's exactly what Troy did as a child. Then his bright blue eyes would light up when he found out the answer.

He glanced down to see the little girl's face brighten and her eyes light up.

"He needed to get food for Brownie!" She said grinning, as if she had found a vital clue to solve the crime. He chuckled, almost wanting the little girl to shout 'Ms. Scarlet with the candlestick in the dining room!' But she didn't.

"A dog?" Elizabeth shook her head, brown curls bobbing up and down. The man and the girl headed toward the pet section of the large department store. Jack knew that, if this man loved his daughter enough, then he would not still be shopping. Rather, he would be worried sick and wondering the store.

Once, Jack lost Troy. They were actually in Wal-Mart as well. Jack needed to get his wife some supplies for dinner and Troy had plans to go look at the basketballs. However, the town was small and everyone knew who Troy was, so the duo connected easily. However, LA was no Albuquerque.

"Elizabeth!!" They heard someone shout from another isle, "Liz, this isn't funny. Where are you?" Elizabeth jumped and told Jack,

"That's my daddy! We gotta find him!" She grabbed the man's hand and headed toward the end of the isle, shouting 'Daddy!'

Jack followed her quickly, having a hard time keeping up. He laughed at the irony, wanting to say 'I'm getting too old for this.' His 55th birthday was approaching and at this moment, he was feeling pretty old.

The little girl ran toward a man with sandy brown hair and Jack knew that she was safe. He smiled and headed on passed the two until he heard the man speak into the phone,

"Yes, El, I have her. Oh don't you 'Troy Bolton' me. I told you I'd have her back safely. I'm super dad." Jack's eyes were two times their actual size. His son. His granddaughter, "Baby, I'll be home soon. And I'll super glue her hands together with mine." He heard his son chuckle, "That's why you married me, huh?"

Jack pretended as if he was reading the label on a can and listened to his son's telephone conversation. Troy got married? Without their family? Troy had kids? Troy had a dog? That was why he ran away, to avoid the domestic lifestyle, right?

Jack glanced over his shoulder to notice that Elizabeth was tightly holding onto her father's hand and hugging him, never letting go. "El, Liz and I are going to finish up shopping, together. Yes, Gabriella Bolton, I will indeed make sure that I bring our daughter home safely."

Jack's eyes went wide again. Troy married Gabriella? Troy and Gabriella had two kids together? Troy and Gabriella had a dog? Troy and Gabriella had a domestic lifestyle, together?

His guilty conscious approached his throat, making him swallow loudly. He was horrified when a pair of blue eyes met his and the man spoke slowly,

"Shit El, I gotta call you back. And no, I didn't lose Elizabeth again. El…my dad is here." He paused, "Let me call you back. I love you." Troy glanced over at his daughter,

"Elizabeth, ear muffs." Jack made a small chuckle when the little girl covered her ears with her hands and leaned against the cart.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Troy demanded, checking to make sure that his daughter wasn't hearing what he said.

"On vacation with Lucille," Jack said in a short tone. Troy was silent for a few minutes and stared intently at his father,

"Oh." Jack sighed and glanced at his son,

"So, what are you up to?" Troy stared at his dad, shocked at how civil the conversation was going. This wasn't exactly how he imagined talking to his dad again but he went with the flow,

"Good. I married Gabriella Montez about four and a half years ago and we have two kids now. Their names are Elizabeth, who is turning 5 in May, and Alexander who is 9 months old. Um…El works at People Magazine and I," he cleared his throat slowly, "teach a few classes at UCLA."

Jack chuckled. Troy had a domestic lifestyle alright. The dog, the jobs, the kids, and the marriage…and Jack could tell that his son wouldn't change it for anything for the world.

"Well, it's ironic that we see each other in this huge city." Troy shrugged, as they avoided the large elephant, that was until Troy finally brought it up,

"She was pregnant. That's why we left." Jack dropped everything in his hands, shocked at what his son had just revealed to him.

"But…we…" Jack was stuttering confused as to what was going on. He had raised the two to wait until marriage and she got pregnant out of wedlock?

"We eloped. We bought a small house. I got a job and worked hard. Then Elizabeth was born and El got a job. Then we got money and moved to a better house. Then we had Alex, who was planned, and that's where we are now." Jack scrambled to pick up the few things that had fallen out of his cart.

"Why…but…?" Troy finished,

"You would have been ashamed. You would have been disappointed. We didn't want that. So, we left." Jack didn't know what to say to his son. He was ashamed. He was disappointed. But, Elizabeth was a beautiful little girl, getting many of her traits from her mother but her eyes were most definitely from her father.

"Well, we should exchange numbers, maybe your mother and I can catch a lunch with you while we are here." Troy whipped out his phone and told his daughter she could uncover her ears,

"Daddy, are you mad at me? Cause, I'm real sorry that I ran off." Troy picked up his daughter and laughed,

"Of course not, but Mommy is mad at Daddy. So, when we get home we have to be extra nice to her." Troy tickled his daughter and grabbed his phone back from his father as his father had programmed his number.

"I'll talk to Gabriella and we'll be in touch." Jack turned to leave but turned back to Troy,

"Domestic lifestyle is better than you thought, huh?"

"Best thing that ever happened to me."

I think it's like the worst thing I've ever posted. Be nice though, this is my comeback piece. I have another oneshot that's coming up soon that is way better than this. Like, A Day as the Bolton Family good.

Which reminds me. I need help. I really want to make a banner for 'What happens in Vegas' and 'A Day as the Bolton Family' stories but I don't know what to do! If you want to make them for me, I'll give you a preview of my newest oneshot (which is better than this one) and will be your best friend. :)

Hate it? Love it? Review it?

Be nice, it's a 'warm up' piece. More is coming in 2009, I promise. Maybe even a new story. I have ideas flowing in my head, I just have to find a way to get them typed up! So, review and give me constructive critism and not mean comments. Please.