#also ashlyn was mentioned ONCE and she's playing the lead.

[itsasweater]

HSMTMTS thoughts before season 4 pt. 2 continued.....

Just a continuation of my thoughts on the ships after my re-watch of S1 through 3 before the final season airs. The first part of pt. 2 only touched on Rini, I wanted to fit more ships in but it would have been way to long of a post so here is the rest. Once again just a warning that I'm going to be brutally honest about the ships on the show.

Portwell (Gina and EJ):

The common question with this pairing that I see asked is, why put them together just to break them up? Well, because they were a plot device. Simple as that, you can be mad at that but the evidence and hints were there all along.

They had no romantic undertones at all until EJ all of a sudden has feelings for Gina in ep5 titled The Quinceanero in S2. Gina is upset in this episode, wants to leave again and we are shown EJ looking longing at her. Just bam out of nowhere, he's interested. Nothing from the previous 4 episodes or previous season that would explain it. Also, remember that before this EJ has a whole discussion with Ashlyn of how much older he feels compared to her and how young she seems but now he is interested in her best friend. What? Was this pairing not rushed and out of nowhere.

Let's get into some of the evidence and hints that the show gave that should have made people realize that this pairing was just a plot device. First off, one of the big ones that just slapped the viewers in the face is the flashback scene between Ricky and Gina at the end of S1. The show filmed and kept that for a reason. They inserted that to plant the seeds to the audience that they're story was not over and to be prepared for that. They put it right in the next episode after they show that EJ may be interested in Gina, almost like they were saying this pairing between Gina and EJ might be happening but remember this moment for the future. Also, just like how in order for Rini to get back together they had to remove Gina, they had to completely stop all interactions between Gina and Ricky for Portwell to happen. This tactic that shows use of removing a character and or stopping communication between the two characters so that one of them can bond with someone else is always a red flag too me. A light bulb just always goes off in my head when this happens. That just tells me that the show knows that those characters bond is so strong that in order to make a pairing with one of them with someone else believable or shine they have to remove them from interacting with each other. Like, if I am supposed to take them seriously, why do you have to remove all communication between Ricky and Gina for them to work. People always bring up the couch scene that Gina and EJ have as this big great moment, yes it was a nice scene but they always miss something that was said. EJ says something along the lines of "you know" or "you know what I mean" and Gina immediately responds with a NO. Parallel that with her discussions with Ricky and how they understand what each other mean and or say. This stuff isn't by accident, it's seeds being planted. Even the episode where Gina is in the airport and she meets Jack, it's all tied to Ricky if you re-watch the episode. Jack even mentions taking the safest seat on the plane (hint: this is EJ). We get to the finale of S2 which is a whole mess to start out with and Gina's brother Jamie mentions EJ being a big brother to her lol The show was not even taking them seriously as a pairing. Which leads to once again just like S1's finale having a hard to watch scene with the Rini confession, S2 outdoes it with the cringe. Making Gina say will you be my first kiss to EJ across a parking lot, run to each other while it's very obvious the actors were not taking it seriously, playing circus music in the background and then having no payoff in seeing the kiss. Please people, the show didn't take this relationship seriously.

We get to S3 ep1 and Gina mentions experiencing a summer of first's including a first boyfriend, funny how a big thing about Gina is not doing thing anything right the first time. That dialogue is not by accident. At the end of ep 1 we get EJ saying nothing is going to ruin his and Gina's perfect summer together but Gina say's who said anybody would and right as she say's that Ricky shows up right in the middle of them in the frame. Media literacy people, that wasn't by accident. Next, EJ mentions to Gina about being surprised by Ricky showing up at the beginning of ep 2 and Gina immediately changes the subject, go back and look at the face she makes. The show was not exactly subtle with the seeds that were being planted about where the season was going and which pairing was going to happen. To make it even clearer they have Ricky play Kristoff and Gina play Anna, with EJ stepping in at certain parts to play Hans. Kristoff literally asks Anna what Hans last name is and she doesn't know, paralleling that with Gina not knowing what EJ stands for in the same episode. Come to think of it, the show was really making it obvious to the audience what was going to happen. You literally had to close your eyes and plug your ears to not see or hear what the show was telling you.

Finally, would I have preferred that these two were never put together like many others have said if they were just going to break them up? Sure. I also think you couldn't put Gina with Ricky before having her experiencing a relationship first and learn about what she want's and needs from one before that happening. Did the show have another choice but EJ to pair with Gina for her to experience all of this, not really. I also think the show should have just kept EJ the way he was in season 1, he was fun and caused problems. Every character doesn't have to be good and nice. I hate when shows do that.

In the end, you fell for a plot device ship that had a lot of hints and slapping you over the head signs telling you that they were not going to last. Like I said on previous posts it certainly seems like most people, not all but most who shipped Portwell was because it kept Gina and Ricky apart as opposed to actually liking them. So, undercover Rini's/Jolivia's whatever you want to call them.

This turned out long again lol My apologies, I always end up just rambling on. Probably won't be able to talk about the other ships before the new season airs but will still probably post my thoughts.

Thanks for reading and hope everyone enjoys the final season.

[rosesradio]

portwell after camp and they’re neigborhoods

hi ! good morning :-) or evening, whatever it is for you. at first i read this and was like 'yeah that's a sentance/concept' before i realized that maybe. just maybe. it was a drabble prompt. because i do those lol. anyways, this one made me a little feral because i saw a post idea about it earlier but i forgot who posted it (feel free to lmk if you recognize the concept), and this ended up being a little over 1k words, so !! without further rambling, enjoy !

AU: EJ stays in Salt Lake; He and Gina are neighbors; Gina and Ricky are not dating/do not have feelings for each other (oh no portbowell :') )

"Shit!" Gina whispered to herself, running out to the sidewalk just as the school bus was pulling out of the neighborhood. It wasn't her fault it had to come so early; in a couple months, when she had her license and a car, she could leave the house a little later. For now, though, adjusting to the back to school schedule was brutal, and one-too-many times of running out of the house last minute had to lead to getting ditched.

She pulled out her phone, ready to call someone; Ashlyn, maybe, or Kourtney? Gina hated asking people for favors; she was self-sufficient for in getting the bus, but she couldn't just skip school.

"Hey," A familiar voice called, and Gina looked up to see EJ jogging over. His hair looked ruffled, as if he hadn't quite finished styling it, as off-brand as that was. He was also wearing sweatpants with a baggy shirt that read Gimme A Beat in faded pink letters.

Gina wasn't sure how to feel, seeing EJ. Her ex. There wasn't any animosity there that Gina knew of, but it was still awkward. Awkward and ironic, because after all the Success School drama, EJ ended up staying. (Which, one would think--if this were a Disney movie--they would get back together immediately. But things didn't work that way sometimes.)

"Hey?" Gina asked uncertainly. "What's up?"

"I noticed you missed the bus," EJ nodded in the direction of the retreating bus. He had a hand on his hips, absent-mindedly playing with a keychain on his car keys, which he'd brought with him. "Thought maybe you'd need a ride."

"Oh," Gina started. Honestly, she was just surprised to see him up. She hadn't thought about it--okay, so she thought about it here and there--that he'd still be asleep at this time. But he was up--tired, but awake. And offering her a favor she might not get from someone else. "Yeah, okay."

"Cool," EJ smiled slightly, heading in the direction of his car, Gina following. Just like that. He even opened the door for her, making a grand sweeping gesture of it, like the goofy prince he used to be.

"So," Gina started once they were both in the car. "What are you doing up right now? I thought you could do your schoolwork whenever."

EJ had mentioned that the last time they'd talked, when they both just-so-happened to be getting the mail at the same time. EJ didn't go to the Success School, so now he was living with his mom while he worked his way through online community college. Apparently, the classes didn't even have meet-up times, something Gina was incredibly envious of. If Gina could sleep in until ten, no one would ever catch her up at 6:30.

"I can, I just like to maintain a good schedule so I'm not tempted to slack off," EJ explained, wrapping an arm around the back of Gina's seat to check behind him, backing out when the coast was clear. "When I get things done earlier, I have more time to...bask in the joys of self isolation."

Gina frowned at the thought. EJ had been in half a dozen clubs in school and had a good group of friends--and now he didn't even have college classmates. She'd have to invite him to something the drama club was doing sometime.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, looking over at his profile as he watched the road. Even now, like this, he was pretty. There was no denying that.

"Don't be," EJ shrugged. "It's an interesting lifestyle. I'm discovering the joys of polymer clay art. I got all these little tools off amazon, and I made a little cow and a smiling mushroom--"

"Okay, we have got to get you out of the house," Gina couldn't help but laugh, which prompted EJ to laugh, and it filled her with warmth at the idea that she had not had fun with EJ in a really long time.

"We?" EJ asked once the laughter faded, a smile still gracing his face.

"Yeah," Gina replied. "I mean...it's a two-person job, at least. Maybe you could join a clay art club at the senior center."

EJ gave another soft laugh, and the two sat in comfortable silence for a moment.

Then: "Gi?" EJ asked, breaking the silence.

"Hm?"

"Do you wanna know the real reason I was up?" EJ continued, nerves creeping into his voice.

Gina's brows furrowed in confusion. Being up early to do schoolwork seemed like EJ, nothing more to it. But even so. "Sure."

"I..." EJ appeared to struggle for the right phrasing. "I've been getting up early every morning on school days--and, I mean, I am working on schoolwork, but I purposely work at the coffee table by the window. I make sure you make it on the bus okay--and sometimes I go back to bed after that." He said humorously. "But I just wanted to be there, in case you missed the bus. There's been a lot of close calls, you know, you should really try to get out of the house sooner."

"Oh," Gina replied, a silence spanning across them after that. She didn't know if it was just early and she was restless, but she found her eyes stinging. When she broke up with EJ, she'd told him he was no longer the guy that was gonna be there for you. But here he was, being there. Being there every day, whether she actually needed him or not. "Eej, I...I don't know what to say...thank you..."

"Don't mention it," EJ shrugged dismissively, as if Gina was not going to be rotating this notion in her mind for at least the next few hours. "Hey, you wanna go to Starbucks? We got some time, and I've got a craving for an overpriced caramel-coffee milkshake."

Gina grinned in that same old infectious was EJ always brought out of her. "If this is what happens every time I miss the bus, I'll have to wake up late more often.”

EJ glanced over at her thoughtfully then before looking back at the road with a matching smile. "I think I'd like that."

[multimetaverse]

HSMTMTS 3x07 Review

Camp Prom was a great ep for lgbtq rep but was dragged down by bad writing. Let’s dig in!

It’s amazing how far this show has come since Carlos and Seb’s first dance in 1x05. HSMTMTS has broken barrier after barrier when it comes to lgbtq representation on Disney and continues to do so tonight with Ashlyn’s bisexuality and Maddox and Madison’s relationship. It’s a legacy to be proud of and if this show is remembered for anything other than launching Olivia Rodrigo’s career it should be for the lgbtq rep. I think most of the credit goes to Tim Federle and his commitment to telling lgbtq story lines, doubtless informed by him being a gay man himself, is commendable

Carlos giving Ashlyn the pin was a sweet little moment. Odd of course that Ashlyn came out to him off screen but this is still Disney. Even on Riverdale it took them many seasons to use the word bisexual so it wouldn’t shock me if we never hear it on HSMTMTS

It was nice to see Maddox and Madison have their dance. Tim reached out to Jojo Siwa specifically to play Madison and I’m glad he did so especially since I’ve heard that Nickelodeon hasn’t treated her very well since she came out

Jet and Maddox’s duet was great and it continues to amuse me that musically speaking Jet has been the male lead for most of the season. Reader, I’ll admit that I had to fast forward most of Maddox’s speech because it was too cloying but I’m glad that she found her people and that her and Jet reconciled. Also good to know that her parents are just strict and not homophobic

Nice to see Seb again and we even got a kiss right out of the gate. Seb being dumb can be overdone but he was hilarious tonight especially when he burst in on EJ and Gina

Dara’s song was great and I’m glad the cast is still getting opportunities to write and sing original songs. Glad she overcame her fears. Carlos afraid of being shirtless was more just set up for a montage of the male cast members getting wet and shirtless which I doubt a lot of the audience will be complaining about

We got the inevitable Portwell break up which was even more poorly written than I expected. For Gina to say that their relationship didn’t even start is just completely false. We know they were dating happily for months in between the end of S2 and the beginning of S3 but Portwell needs to be torn down to build up Rina. I’m glad EJ finally mentioned Ricky’s part in this mess, true he’s not the only or even the biggest reason why Portwell has gown down in flames but he played a role and his flirting with Gina has been so blatant that EJ and others have noticed it

Gina’s right that they’re in different places right now and that EJ’s life is in flux and with the age gap between them it’s an extremely valid reason to break up. However, that will all equally apply in less than a year in universe once Ricky graduates but I’m not holding my breath that Rina sinks over it. Gina wanting someone reliable is very understandable and is part of why she fell for EJ in S2 as he was reliable while Ricky was not but Ricky can be reliable during this two week summer camp because he doesn’t have any responsibilities. Sure EJ has gone overboard with directing the show but anyone filling that role would have to dedicate most of their time to it. And yes their teenagers but the show is literally the next day, the huge drain on EJ’s time is literally done in 24 hours

Looking Ahead:

One thing that caught my attention was Ricky saying that he would have a long time to figure things out regarding his confession before the documentary would come out. Shortly after the S2 finale an account on reddit claiming to have connections to the production side of the show said that the show would stop filming on location in Salt Lake, that S3 would be set at a summer camp and would feature camp rock songs, and S4 would return to East High after a 6 month time jump for the final semester of Ricky, Big Red, and Kourtney’s senior year to wrap up the series. Most of that has come to pass and as Tim has said that the documentary will have a big impact on the kids lives it would make sense for the documentary to be coming out before or early on during S4

There’s no doubt that Gina will find out about Ricky’s confession one way or the other before the finale ends, even if we don’t see or hear her reaction. And yet as of now it doesn’t seem very dramatic, there’s no real obstacles between them at this moment. The only cheap drama I could think of is that EJ attempts to win back Gina or Gina agrees to give EJ a second chance before Ricky confesses or his confession gets played. It would be terrible but with Tim’s track record it might just happen

It’s weird that Carlos and Ashlyn are so blasé about Ricky flirting with Gina but it’s even odder that no one mentions that Ashlyn is currently dating Big Red. It’s great that she’s exploring her sexuality but she’s not a free agent at the moment. That little scene at the end implying Maddox likes Ashlyn wasn’t very well set up and it’s hard to see Disney letting a bisexual love triangle unfold even if that’s what Tim intended. Certainly it would be very weird to have Big Red show up in the finale only for Ashlyn to break up with him

Well let’s see how much of Frozen we actually get to see. Next week might be the final appearance of Nini and will in many ways determine the course of the rest of the series. Until next week, wildcats

[zaine-m]

July 15th - I always wait way too far into the day and end up posting these at like 12 am. I'll try working on it for the next episode. I'm pretty excited to start the seconds season, It means we're getting closer to the release of season 3.

Previous -- next

Season 2 Episode 1: "New Year's Eve" thoughts under cut:

Okay, big recap

I love how Caswen has seen each other shirtless

Right, the Yac thing with Nini, why did she get into that?

Jenn asks Carlos if Gina and the dancers are good then she answers

Are you Kourtney, or are you going to put Nini first again?

Okay, I was watching Zombies 3 earlier today and all the group dances looks so weird there but here they look so natural. I guess t's because here they're filming a music video, not hunting aliens

Ahh, Portwell's first couple moment!

Gina's dance moment ♥️

"We'll never break apart"... sure

Is it Gina or Nini who says "I'm gonna make my mark" I've seen lyric websites say it's Nini but in the video it's pretty clearly Gina

I found it kinda weird how they had Ricky hold the camera at the end when Nini's still supposed to be the main character. I guess it foreshadows Nini not being the man character anymore

Why does Carlos never invite people to his house

Ricky being so happy about getting back with Nini. Perhaps to an unhealthy extent

Nini, Ricky is trying to have a healthy relationship wit good communications and you're just hiding huge secrets

Why is Kourtney always the first to know when someone's coming or leaving

Expand your friend circle Kourtney

The way Gina quiets herself after she gets excited, who hurt you

Also her hair <3

Ashina holding each other really close (I like to jus ignore that Ashlyn has a boyfriend)

So the fire thing being revealed just didn't have any effect on the story, cool

Mike is just trying his best

Someone give Ricky a hug

Nini, tell him that you're leaving, stop procrastinating, i'll just hurt him more

The way that Nini is constantly compared to Ricky's mom is kinda Freudian

Nini, you've gotta fucking tell him, it's only gonna get worse from here

"You're my home" go to therapy

"The Ricky and Nini of North High" Why does she project onto the students so much

I love how at this point the viewers are just used to the teacher hanging out with a student outside of school

Okay, Miss Jenn was the lead in every play? This creates so many questions about her character. The whole "Bet on the underdog" thing made me think that she ever get the lead. But she was he girl who was always the lead??

Also Lacrosse players. Eww

You're high school exes, why is she being so bitter. Of course he would dump her when they went to different universities

Does miss Jenn really not know about that award? They act like it's pretty common knowledge

The way Ricky thinks his relationship with Nini is reliant on the musical. Someone get this boy some therapy

"I need to count on myself instead" The importance of this line!

I love how intense he's being with the dance. He's really giving his all

"Don't whatever me loverboy"

The way the writers wanted tension for the kiss but they already had them kiss once so they just gave that bullshit excuse

Did they just decide in this episode that Big Red's parent's have a pizza place

Not the throb 😭

Then they also decided that Carlos is rich. I feel like they should get better at planning ahead of time

The look they give Carlos when he says the "confident enough to dress comfortably" line

Everyone already knows the musical Carlos

"I'm Mexican and gay. This is my inside voice"

Kourtney directly tells Seb what the game is and he still gets it wrong

I think this might be the last time the waterpolo guys are mentioned

"That's actually really sweet" then they go back to insulting each other. The sibling vibes

Carlos is trying so hard to keep the secret

Ricky is so fucking excited about the musical. Why do they get him happy just to give him that much higher to fall from

I love how the drama department revolves around whatever quarter-life crisis she's having that week

EJ being way too confident about going to duke

"I lost track of the air quotes"

Wait, Seb is most thankful of his cows and not Carlos. He chose his cows over his boyfriend

The awkward silence

Kourtney immediately knowing who it is

"I'm Ashlyn. I like to know what's happening in my life"

Noo, EJ accidently making Big Red insecure about the perfume and getting in the way of Redlyn

"You know facial blindness. I have that but with emotion. I mean, I also have facial blindness" Autistic mood

"It's probably nothing" Talk about it Ricky

Ashina Singing!!!!

That screaming scrunched up face Ricky does when he sings, why does he do that? Is that just a thing the actor does?

Portwell having a moment in the midnight countdown

Miss Jenn cutting her hair after running into her ex is a mood

An american classic that's set in France lol

"The most important award in theater" that she didn't know about this morning

Miss Jenn, tone down your projection

Why is everyone assuming Nini will get the lead, like wtf why is she such a main character

Again Nini why did you announce that as publicly as possible at the worst time as possible

[redlyncentral]

HSMTMTS s2b episode description breakdown, speculation and some of my own opinions:

there's so much to unpack with these new synopses, so this is my take!

in episode 8 we hear that the wildcats are benched from rehearsals from a week, a thing that probably happened due to their little trip to north high and that rivalry over a piece of clothing that was probably not even stolen by them (or it was and they just hid it too well), and we finally get to see a school activity outside of the drama club!

it's career week and it looks like we might finally focus on big red for a second since it's been a while since he got an individual story, and it's probably gonna be around how he doesn't want to work at the pizzeria his entire life. Howie finally makes a move with Kourtney which I can only assume will be asking her out on a date. makes sense since they met in episode 3 and redlyn only had five episodes to develop as well.

we're finally seeing one of the Caswell parents! the way they're described they seem to be pretty uninvolved in their kid's lives as EJ and Ashlyn are alone a lot, so it will be interesting to see that storyline, especially seeing ej being mentioned by name in a description for the first time in since episode four.

we're getting to see spring break in action and it seems like they're actually taking two-episode break from the drama club which is odd since we barely saw them rehearse anything at all. I will not be surprised if they won't win.

ricky's mom is coming back and I honestly don't know what to expect, I don't want that 'oh, you're my mom so I forgive you for everything with a minor apology' which is probably gonna happen, I wish Ricky will get his moment to go off on her and how she neglected him and left him alone with his dad and barely keeping touch.

in episode ten we finally have a mention of rehearsals, but of course, it falls flat. I don't mind focusing on the inner dynamics within the club but it feels like they didn't even rehearse cohesively for this musical... and it seems like in this ep we might get gina confessing her feelings to Ricky, a thing that will cause trouble with nini. their friendship was briefly explored and I honestly hope that this episode will bring them closer and actually make them friends.

seblos are having their first fight, and I hope that they'll get to actually resolve their issues instead of having Seb's fear of Carlos get the better of him, the poor boy doesn't even have the heart to tell him about the cashmere sweaters...

it seems like east high are still lost on how to make batb good which again gives me the impression that they are not winning this season. with only an episode left before opening night, I doubt that they'll be able to pull something incredible... but then again, it's Disney.

the unexpected facetime might be from gina who wanted to backtrack her confession, at least so I hope. gina deserves better.

finally, episode 11 is opening night. by having nini be the hype girl and her not being in costume when ash is going on stage as belle, I'm thinking that maybe the rose's role will get cut and she'll give up on the play. maybe her dream changes to being a theater teacher or a songwriter?

unexpected visitors might just be north high kids like lily and Antoine trying to intimidate the kids. EJ might have a decision about what to do after this school year and what will happen in seasons 3+4. I honestly doubt that anyone will leave, except for Olivia.

episode twelve, the last one, seems like an episode similar to episode 7 in season one, where the teens got to just enjoy opening night and having the adults together.

the party crasher might be jack since he's in one or two episodes and 'gina's truth' might be asking him out.

Nini's phone call is probably a way to have her written out of the show if she'll find a way out of her contract.

the lack of Antoine mentions makes me think that they were just teasing us about him actually coming between ashlyn and big red.

so in conclusion, s2b is going to be, in a word, dramatic.

[caswellprmanager]

drawbridge

read it on ao3

Ship: Ricky Bowen/EJ Caswell

Summary: Snippets of EJ Caswell's life leading up to the mystery that is Ricky Bowen.

Notes: Hello. I decided to bite the bullet and post something here! This technically is in my Trans!EJ and Genderqueer!Ricky AU but I haven't properly written anything for it yet so consider this one to be the first official fic within that universe. Feel free to send some asks or other headcanons in my inbox about the AU! I'd love to hear what people think (but don't be unnecessarily mean. I will delete that very quickly.)

Disclaimer: I'm not an expert in all things transgender or genderqueer. I am writing from my own experience within the spectrum however so it's truthful to what I have been through, but will not represent everyone else's experiences. I also have friends within the spectrum who have given me great advice on how to go about these things but once again, it won't be accurate to everyone's experiences.

Warnings: Mentions of gender dysphoria, transphobia, and neglectful parents

People always told EJ that he had the picture perfect family.

His mom and dad were successful corporate lawyers, they lived in the wealthiest suburb in all of Salt Lake City, and he was the kind of child other parents would compare their own children to saying, "why can't you be more like EJ?"

But EJ knows that's farthest from the truth.

He doesn't have the picture perfect life or the paragon of White American families that people think they do. His parents are affectionate and supportive only when there are people around to comment on it. Most of the time, they're not even at home, leaving all of the child raising to their maids and other house servants. EJ spends more time at Ashlyn's house than he does at home because at least his aunt and uncle actually treat him like a son.

Because there are days his parents would forget they have a son. Sometimes they'd slip and call him their daughter, which makes EJ want to disappear from this world altogether. He supposes he should be grateful that they even bothered to pay for all the things he asked for — binders, testosterone shots, and regular visits to the doctor to check up on him throughout his transition. And he is grateful. He knows so many kids like him that can't even afford a decent sized binder without going bankrupt. He used to be that kid until he gathered up all his courage to come out to his parents.

But what they told him?

"Well, if you're gonna be our son, you will have to work twice as hard to make us proud now."

Yeah. It's a lot to process when you're 12 years old and scared shitless that you'd be disowned for "disrupting the natural order." But he figures things could be worse. So he sucks it up and vows to become the kind of son that his parents could truly brag about.

When EJ was a kid, he loved mysteries. His parents were the greatest mystery of them all. He's spent so much of his time trying to figure out what makes them happy, or angry, or sad. He's put the clues together and has a cork board of pictures and red string at the forefront of his mind whenever he so much as tries to interact with them. Soon, he sort of figured out what makes his parents smile at him — when EJ is excellent.

So, he became excellent at all kinds of sports, took up piano lessons, studied until his eyeballs burned with the lowlight of his desk lamp — all so that he could maybe get a pat on the back from his dad and a small smile from his mom. Their versions of "good job" or "keep it up." He drank that all in, craved it even, and worked his whole life until now to get even an iota of his parents' affection.

So, when he meets Ricky Bowen, the lanky and extremely clumsy skater who seems to live in the detention room, he was met with a brand new mystery to solve.

"Who's that?" EJ whispers into Nini's ear, who just seems to be irritated by the new person's presence.

"That's Ricky," she says with the barest hint of affection but with a whole lot of irritation. "My ex."

"Huh," He says, intrigued by the way Ricky's movements stutter like a half-finished stop motion film and how their wide doe eyes scan the room like — unironically — a deer in headlights. They looked nervous, confused, and all around terrified and EJ wants to reach out to them and tell them that this was a safe space. That they could be whoever they wanted to be in the theater.

He glances at Nini when Ricky starts singing a song that she seems to recognize. The immediate tensing of her shoulders and the way she subconsciously reaches out for EJ's hand for support tells him that this song... means something. Or meant something. EJ's not quite sure but he squeezes Nini's hand in silent reassurance, bringing himself to half-glare at the guitar playing skater just a few feet before him.

--

He met Nini during theater camp. A firecracker of talent with a voice that could melt the heart of even the coldest man on earth. She was beautiful in the spotlight and even more ethereal beneath the stars. She was kind, gentle, and a mystery that EJ solved quickly enough. She wore her heart on her sleeve despite it being broken because she believes that broken hearts can be mended with time and patience.

Nini was patient with him. She was patient with him when he took her up the little hill next to the campsite just to watch the stars on an old picnic blanket he stole from the camp counselors. She was patient with him when he couldn't keep up with the dance steps. Her hand was warm in his own and the flush of her palm by his neck was a grounding force that kept his head from going in the clouds.

She was especially patient with him when he took her to an empty tent and told her about his life. Nini was kind. Nini was patient. Nini was safe. And if she were to walk away and tell him that she wanted nothing to do with him after what he told her, he would have understood and learned to not associate kind brown eyes and ukulele calloused fingers to what could be barely described as home.

But she held his hand in her tinier ones, a smile on her face that radiated warmth that seeped into the depths of his soul, and told him that she was proud of him.

It was the first time that someone was proud of him... for just being him.

He cried into her arms that night, knowing he's got a lifelong friend within the kind brown eyes and ukulele calloused fingers of one Nini Salazar-Roberts.

--

"She thinks I'm a Chad?" He asks, less incredulously and more with a burning curiosity.

Nini rubs his arm comfortingly but he keeps staring at the cast list like it was going to burst into flames any second. "You're still a Troy understudy! You could still go on as him in one of the shows."

"Shows only run for three nights, Nini." He says with barely concealed frustration. Great. If he can't even get the role he was technically destined to play, how the hell is he going to explain himself to his parents?

You're not the lead? Oh, then we won't watch. If you're not onstage the whole time, why be there?

EJ grits his teeth and slowly brings his gaze to the person who has just taken away one more way for him to prove himself to his parents. Ricky Fucking Bowen, who stands there once again with their enormous brown eyes, gaping like a fish. EJ wants to deck them in the face. But Nini's hold on his arm grounds him back to reality and he lets out a long breath through his nose.

This is gonna be a long next few months.

--

"Look, I'm just trying to make the best out of a bad situation."

"Don't try," He ends up saying, still wiping at the blood caused by the basketball Ricky hit him with only moments ago. "It's painful to watch you do something you clearly don't want to do."

"What makes you think I don't want to do this?" Ricky asks with furrowed brows and EJ throws the wadded up tissue paper stained with his blood into the trash.

"You hated musicals before you auditioned. You landed the part of Troy without even fucking trying. And now you think you can get through rehearsals without fucking trying? It's tiring to work with someone who couldn't give two shits about this musical in the first place!" He says, every sentence rising in volume as he steps closer and closer to Ricky. "You also need to stay the fuck away from Nini."

Ricky scoffs then. "Why? Cause you're her boyfriend?"

"What? And you are?" He retaliates, which effectively makes Ricky click their mouth shut. EJ smirks. "Yeah. That's what I thought."

"Nini can choose whoever she wants to talk to." Ricky ends up saying with tense shoulders and a glare that could murder if EJ weren't already a person who doesn't fear death. "You can't tell me what to do."

"Well someone has to!" EJ throws his hands up in frustration, grabbing his jacket and zipping it up angrily. "Because you don't listen to Nini though, do you? Have you ever listened to her? Do you listen to anybody?"

"EJ I—"

"You better listen to me right now Ricky Bowen," he laces every syllable of Ricky's name with venom. "Stop trying to make things right. Stop trying to become a person you're not. If you actually cared about Nini or – god forbid – the musical, you'd stop trying and just get your shit together."

EJ doesn't even bother to look back at Ricky as he exits the bathroom, unaware of the look in Ricky's eyes when he walked away.

--

It isn't until Ricky approaches him one day after rehearsals that EJ was finally starting to unravel the mystery that was Ricky Bowen.

"Hey... EJ?" Ricky asks, looking at anywhere but at him and EJ would have been annoyed if it weren't for the way Ricky was holding themselves in front of him. They were tense, eyes glassy and unfocused whenever EJ caught a glance, and their fingers were gripping their bag straps so tightly that he was afraid Ricky was going to rip it apart if they weren't careful.

"Hey Ricky," He says with a softer voice than he's ever used with Ricky. "Is there something you need?"

Ricky's eyes dart around the still full rehearsal room, at the dangerously close proximity Miss Jenn was, at the stage managers that were just behind EJ who were reviewing the blocking notes, and finally at Nini who was engaged in a conversation with Carlos and Seb. Ricky's eyes lingered on Nini for a bit before they reluctantly settled on EJ's pristine white sneakers. "I would have normally asked Nini for this but – and you can say no by the way I'd completely understand – it's just..."

Ricky looks around again before leaning closer to EJ and shakily whispering, "Do you have any tampons?"

And just like that, the walls that were built around a certain Ricky Bowen were starting to crack. And EJ was allowed to see the smallest snippet of the kind of vulnerability that Ricky was capable of.

And it was the kind of vulnerability that he could relate to completely.

"My emergency stash is in my locker," He says, hastily packing up the rest of his things while Ricky continues to stand there dumbfounded. When EJ turns back to him with his own bag over his shoulder, he could see that there are a few unshed tears shining in Ricky's eyes. EJ softens for a second, knowing how difficult it must have been for Ricky to come to him for something so private.

"Come on. I'll even guard the bathroom for you." Ricky eventually follows him after a few seconds of just staring at his back and they fall in step around the corner. Ricky stays silent, fingers all fidgety and eyes still darting around like they'll be caught any second. EJ, instinctually, wraps a comforting arm around Ricky's shoulders. Ricky doesn't relax immediately but they do lean a little closer, somehow finding the weight of EJ's arm around them safe.

They eventually reach EJ's locker and Ricky smiles a bit because it's directly across from Sharpay's famous pink lockers. "Did you choose this spot specifically for Sharpay's lockers?"

EJ glances behind him and chuckles, rummaging through his stuff. "Oh yeah. If you say Ashley Tisdale three times in a row while touching her locker, you're guaranteed good fortune for at least a week."

Ricky looks at him with a smirk. "Have you tried that before?"

"Every year during finals week. I'm telling you, that shit works."

"Or maybe you're just really smart."

"Maybe," EJ says, finally locating his emergency stash of period essentials. "Or maybe it's just Ashley Tisdale bopping me to the top."

That's when Ricky lets out a laugh — an honest to god booming belly laugh that makes EJ pause just to stare at him. They look... nice like this. Without the worry lines and longing gazes at a girl who won't give them the time of day. They look just like a little kid, carefree and alive despite the world crumbling all around them, and EJ feels a weird surge of pride at being the person who made Ricky laugh like that.

He wants Ricky to laugh like that more. He wants to be the person who makes Ricky laugh like that more.

And so the walls around Ricky crack a little further, and the drawbridge is opened for one weary traveler to come in.

EJ doesn't notice the cracks on his own walls, nor the knowing little princess who watches from the east tower, smiling.

--

"Hey, what are your pronouns?"

Ricky doesn't look up from their practice skateboard, concentrating hard on their balance. "I don't have any. I'm just Ricky." They look up though, giving EJ a warm smile. "But go ahead and use any pronouns with me. I don't mind if it's you."

"So would you mind if I call you your majesty?"

EJ doesn't miss the flush on Ricky's cheeks at that and definitely doesn't miss the way they say "I'd like that very much." with the barest hint of embarrassment.

"Okay," EJ says with his chin propped up in his hands. "Your majesty."

Ricky falls off of their practice skateboard then, soon glaring up at a cackling EJ still with a blushing face.

--

EJ forgot his binder today.

And his body loved reminding him every time he took a step.

Thankfully, there wasn't going to be water polo practice today and he could get away with wearing multiple layers to school. But even with the sports bra, the t-shirt, the sweatshirt, and the letterman jacket doing a good job at making his chest look flat, he still felt his skin crawl looking at the mirror. His jeans hugged him a little too tightly, forcing him to notice the still feminine curve of his hips. His sports bra was a tad smaller than the last time he wore it, so the pinch at his chest doubled in size.

EJ resolved that he was not going to have a good day today.

But today was tech rehearsals and he couldn't ditch that. He was starting to really enjoy rehearsals now that he and Ricky are on good terms. Even the stage managers ask him to hang out with them time to time outside of rehearsals. EJ actually felt like... he really belonged somewhere now. And he wasn't going to let this ruin it for him. Not today.

"Hey EJ," He heard Nini say to him as he got out of his car. "What's with all the layers? It's pretty hot today."

"It's one of those days, Neens." He says with a heavy sigh and Nini just grabs his hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze. Ricky rolls up to them two seconds later, their head suspiciously missing a helmet.

"How many times do I have to tell you to wear a helmet when you're skateboarding, Ricky?" EJ tries to scold the junior despite this weirdly overwhelming fondness growing inside of him every time he even looks at Ricky now.

"Haven't gotten into an accident yet," Ricky shrugs, smiling politely at Nini and changing it into a cocky little smirk the second they look at EJ.

"Yet being the operative word here," EJ rolls his eyes and opens his trunk for Ricky to stash his board in for later. "I won't drive you to the hospital if you end up getting a concussion for not wearing a helmet."

"Yes you will." Ricky says, knocking their shoulders together. "You love me!"

EJ freezes for a bit but before he could even respond, Ricky is already catching up to Big Red and Gina, waving back at EJ and Nini with a wide grin. EJ stares at him for a few seconds, not quite sure how to process the last few moments, until Nini waves a hand in front of his face.

"Hello? Earth to EJ?"

"Huh?"

"Care to share with the class what's going on?" The little smirk on her lips says it all and EJ was not going to fall for that.

"Nope. There's nothing to share."

"Mhm," She says, looping her arm around EJ as soon as he closed his trunk. "Of course there isn't, EJ." Nini pretends not to see EJ staring at Ricky as they walk into school. EJ pretends to not notice that she's pretending to not see EJ pretending to not overtly stare at Ricky.

Besides, EJ has gotten pretty good at pretending.

--

Aaaannndd that's it for now. I hope you guys liked that! I really enjoyed exploring trans!ej and genderqueer!ricky through this au and it means a lot to me. Maybe next time I'll write something in ricky's pov but for now thanks for reading !!

[gracestone]

1/2 I love Gina's self awareness in 2.07. She acknowledges more than once how her past behaviors could creep up on her by saying she used to be the kind to steal, she might go all Gina 1.0 w/ the costumes and I'm sure she woulda played dirty against North High but restrains herself. It isn't until Lily says s/t against Ash that G gets in her face because she WILL protect her roomie. I also love the shot of Gina leading the pack and EJ having the Wildcats back when they leave the costume room.

2/2 Gina encourages the team by saying we got this and in Mob Song PW once again take the front and back position when battling North High. I just love the leadership roles PW have in that epi. Makes me more excited to see them as an official power couple in S3. It cant be a coincidence that outta all the Wildcats PW are the least intimidated by Lilys antics cuz they see right thru her lol. Any predictions on how theyll deal with Lily/NH next season? Assuming both schools are still competing e/o

That's a great point, anon! I don't think I've ever really thought all that deeply about how unaffected Portwell were by North High before getting your ask. The two of them are probably the most confident about their own talents and abilities out of the entire group, so it makes sense that the North High kids wouldn't threaten them personally. And because they are very aware of how they feel when they give into their worst impulses, they're able to hold themselves back from regressing to their former selves. A former self that they, and especially Gina, see mirrored in Lily. They used to be like her, so they're less likely to fall for her manipulative tactics, as you already mentioned.

Like you said, Gina is very aware of the temptation that North High provides to become Gina 1.0 again, so she opts to stay behind instead. And it's a testament to EJ's growth that he's not thinking about how to get back at North High while taking off with the group, but that he's instead feeling bad that Gina has to stand on watch alone. So he decides to join her instead of helping the others.

You're so right that Gina only responds to Lily when she insults Ashlyn. And I think we see that defensiveness of their friends and their talents in both EJ and Gina. Just look at them when Antoine insults Kourtney's costumes:

They're also not here for Lily insulting their theater group as a whole. Because they actually believe in the talent of their group. As Gina says: "We're East High. We can make anything work." Which EJ reaffirms with "Yeah we can!"

I love Portwell's leadership role in this episode too! It feels so natural for them to step into those positions, even while they're not the leads of their show nor have any significant enemies from North High. They're supporting their friends, who have all been much more affected by North High's tactics. Just look at EJ trying to reassure Big Red here after seeing how nervous he is:

You also make a good point about Portwell being visually presented as the leaders of the group during The Mob Song. It's especially clear during this sequence:

EJ and Gina start in the second row, but as soon as they sing "We're counting on Gaston to lead the way", Portwell move forward and take the spots at the front of the group, directly confronting North High. Throughout the rest of the song, Portwell are consistently either leading the group or shown having their backs. It's a very interesting visual that tells us a lot about how they're dealing with the North High rivalry vs how the rest of the Wildcats are dealing with it.

Now onto my season 3 predictions.

I don't think we'll get an outright rivalry between North and East High at summer camp. I think it's more likely that they'll have to spend time together as one group working on one musical.

(Side note: how funny would it be if after looking down on East High for doing a made for TV movie as their musical, the North High kids have to do HSM2 as their summer musical?)

I'm not sure what Antoine will be doing, but I doubt Portwell will be involved with him much. He seems more involved in Redlyn's storyline.

I think Howie will be torn between the person he is with the North High kids (the worst version of himself/a carefully curated image of himself) and the person he is with Kourtney (the best version of himself/his real self). Note how we've only ever seen him with the North High kids while wearing the Beast mask. The show uses the Beast mask as a metaphor for the mask Ricky and Howie put on to hide who they truly are. I think Howie will ultimately learn in season 3 to be himself and allow everyone to see him the way Kourtney sees him. Howie could learn a thing or two from EJ in that regard, so hopefully he and EJ will at least have one significant scene together.

I think Portwell will be more involved with Lily. I've already speculated on how I think Portwell will get the leads, and that I find it likely they're doing HSM2. Not getting the lead will hit Ricky hard, and especially if he doesn't get Troy, the role he knows how to play. He'll take that as the failure he so deeply fears. Like it wasn't worth trying this new thing, because it backfired on him. And I think Lily will use that hurt and turn it into a weapon that she can use to get the lead herself. I find it likely Ricky and Lily will try and pull a wonderstudies plot on EJ and Gina. Ricky doesn't seem to know about EJ and Gina's wonderstudies plan, so he probably won't realise that EJ and Gina can see right through them. I could see that plan backfiring in some funny ways, with EJ and Gina just easily sidestepping whatever traps Ricky and Lily try to set. I don't think EJ and Gina would actually get mad at the two of them. I envision it more as them just shaking their heads at their antics and remaining unbothered or feeling a bit sorry for the two of them.

Ultimately, I see the Ricky and Lily arc ending in both of them being isolated from the Wildcats and realising that they don't like being so alone and unhappy. That's the point where I could see EJ and Gina stepping in and talking to them individually. Because EJ and Ricky mirror each other, and so do Gina and Lily. So EJ and Gina could give them some valuable advice and offer them a second chance. I wouldn't be surprised if Gina and Lily grow close at some point during the show (I'm talking s3-5, not necessarily s3).

[freddieslater]

What is your dream cast for Frozen as the summer musical for Season 3 of HSMTMTS?

What a good question! Especially since I only just found out what the plot of season 3 is going to be like two hours ago and haven’t stopped thinking about it since. I LOVE making mock cast lists like this, I do it all the time for Glee, so this is going to be Fun. (The ones with • next to their names are the ones that I would LOVE to see play the characters, while the others are more predictions for who I COULD see playing them based on the show’s past casting choices!)

ELSA:

• Gina (I think that this should be her time to shine as a lead, not just as an understudy to the lead, not to mention the fact that she could absolutely pull off the role of Elsa so beautifully. Imagine the power behind her singing “Let It Go”?)

Carlos (While Gina is my main casting for Elsa, I can also see them doing another gender-bend like they did with Seb as Sharpay? And Carlos would be like the best choice for that of they did because 1) his voice and 2) he would also be able to pull the role of Elsa off really well, and I can’t stop thinking about him specifically singing “conceal don’t feel, just let it go”)

ANNA:

• Ashlyn (We already know she can play the sweet, caring with a stubborn streak protagonist from her playing Belle, so I have no doubt that she would be perfect for Anna. She’d absolutely bring the energy for every song but especially “Love Is An Open Door” and “Do You Want To Build A Snowman?”)

Kourtney (She hasn’t had the chance to be a leading role yet either, so chances are they might switch it up this season, and I’m totally on-board with that! Kourtney has a powerful voice and I can definitelysee her stepping into the role of Anna, maybe not woth the same characterisation as Ashlyn, but it would incredible to see nonetheless.)

KRISTOFF:

• Seb (He hasn’t had the chance to play a leading man yet and I think that Kristoff could be a really good role for him to do that, as he’s a lot different from the last two male protagonists and Seb could probably find a lot relatable about Kristoff. Tell me that “Reindeer(s) are better than people” isn’t a Seb song. It is.)

EJ (I don’t actually know if EJ is going to be in the play itself but if he is then I think he also has a shot at playing Kristoff. I don’t have much reasoning for this one beyond the fact that he’s a bit goofy, but also this would be once again putting him and Ashlyn in a weird romantic pairing so maybe not?)

HANS:

Ricky (While the Beast was *technically* a villain, I think it would be fun for Ricky to play a REAL villain, let him branch out some more. He has some of the energy and personality that Hans initially had when he was pretending to be the goofy good guy, and I can totally see him singing “Love Is An Open Door” with Ashlyn.)

• Big Red (I actually see this one being a bit more likely than Ricky the more I think about it. He’s only played Lefou, a sidekick to the villain, so letting him play a leading role would be new for him. Not to mention it gives him some wider range as well to play such a complex character, AND it would let him have some romantic on-stage moments with Ashlyn which they haven’t had yet. “Love Is An Open Door” with those two would be delightful.)

OLAF:

Carlos (They’re both a little goofy. I have nothing else.)

Ashlyn (If she doesn’t get Anna, then I think that Olaf might be the second choice for her, and I can see her bringing the character to life in a really fun way.)

DUKE WEASLETOWN:

Big Red (If he isn’t playing Hans, then the Duke feels like the second most well suited role for him.)

Ricky (Again, if he isn’t playing Hans, then this would be a fun choice for him! It’s different from his last two roles, so it would be a nice change.)

THE TROLLS:

• Ricky (Specifically, the uh the daddy troll? What is his name? You know the one, though, the MAIN troll. Yeah, I can definitely see Ricky playing him if he wants to take more of a backseat role during summer, but it still gives him an opportunity to sing and be involved.)

[uswntxfootball]

My Sister’s Keeper (Hope Solo x Reader)

request: anon ; Hi! Can you do a R and goalkeeper (Solo or Naeher or Franch) imagine where R is really worried bc her girlfriend got a broken nose and maybe R is the sister of some other USWNT player (like Tobin or Julie or Kelley or someone). Thanks!

word count: 2231 ish

your crush on the number 1 goalkeeper was pathetic (in the eyes of your sister Tobin Heath and best friend Emily Sonnett that is). what would it take for you to finally make a move? (hint: it’s a ball to the face and a broken nose). 

a/n: (au to Hope still playing for the uswnt ofc). changed things up a little for *story telling purposes* but yeah, hope (hahahahha) you enjoy it! also, never seen my sisters keeper but idc im keeping it as a title :P enjoy the fluff! :)

----

“Alright take five!” Vlatko says, blowing on his whistle for you all to take a break. You walk over to Emily, leaning your head on her shoulder as you take a drink water. “I swear Vlatko’s trying to kill us today.” You mumble, wiping your forehead sweat with her sleeve. “Oh god ew”. Emily gags while shaking her arm, trying to rid it of your perspiration. You let out a chuckle and turn to take another drink of water when something catches the corner of your eye. Well more like someone. The goalkeepers were still in training, with Ash, Alyssa and Hope diving left and right for saves. It’s then that Hope takes a second and wipes some sweat off her face with the hem of her shirt, giving you a look at her abs in all their glory. The water you were drinking quickly misses your mouth and ends up all over Sonnett. “What the- Y/N! What are you doing?!” Emily screeches in surprise, slapping the water bottle out of your hand. Emily’s screech draws a set of blue orbs in your direction, your cheeks quickly heating up when your eyes meet for a split second before you look away. The drenched defender takes one look at your flushed face and smirks. “You so have a crush.” “Wha- I- No!” You sputter, your cheeks betraying your false statement as they flush a deeper shade of red. “Awww lil Y/NN has a crushie wushie” she teases while pinching your cheeks. “Shut up.” You grumble, slapping her hands away. Emily and you turn to take a look once again at the keepers, and when Hope dives to the ground for the ball, Sonnett lets out a low whistle and whispers, “I approve and must I say, she is one large sip of water.” “What century did you come from?” You snort, slapping her on the side of the head. Meanwhile on the field, Hope’s eyes drift off to the side to see you and Sonnett bickering, and a soft smile spreads across her face. In the midst of her distraction, she almost gets hit in the face with a ball, but thankful for her quick reflexes, turns to catch it in time. Ashlyn stands back with a grin, having noticed it all. Hope turns to see Ash with a shit eating grin and narrows her eyes, “What are you staring at?” “Nothing. Nothing at all.” ~~ It’s quarter to nine when you get back to the hotel, having been out running errands a few minutes prior. Sonnett had been teasing you nonstop about you crush all day and quite frankly, you couldn’t blame her. You turn the corner of the hallway quickly, not bothering to look up, only to.. crash right into the woman you had been thinking of all day. “I’m so-“ “I’m-“ You both stop speaking, you looking down at the ground bashfully, not daring to look at the woman in front of you. It’s then that you notice how close you are to Hope, your head almost touching her chest and feeling her hot breath on the top of your head. Not to mention that her hands are on your waist and yours are on her... Your eyes widen and you jump away from her, cheeks flushed and you manage to stutter out, “I- I’m sorry I- uh my room uh- ye-yeah th-i-is way.” Hope giggles at your jumbled mess of words and you blush even harder, muttering a “bye” before you race down the hall. You make it to your room in record speed and you slam the door shut and let out a long exhale when you’re in your room, back against the door. “What’s wif you?” Sonnett asks, toothbrush dangling in her mouth, glancing at you in the mirror. You shake your head vigorously, refusing to talk about it. You plop down in your best friend’s bed and replay the events in the hallway over and over. It’s a few minutes later that your phone dings and you roll over to see a text from your sister. *You have a crush on Hope????* “EMILY ANN SONNETT GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!” ~~ Your eyes follow Hope’s every move with interest from the bench, watching as the goalie paces around the box. The game against Panama was surprisingly calm, the US with a 4-0 lead, chilling quite comfortably as the end of the first half draws near. A whistle blows, signaling the end of the first half and snapping you out of your trance. You’re one of the last to make it into the locker room, but before you do, someone turns and elbows you in the face, knocking you to the ground. “Shit! I’m so sorry!” You look up dazed to see, of course, Hope Solo staring down at you apologetically. She extends a hand out and you take it timidly, cheeks flushed and heart racing. She must have overestimated your weight or maybe it was just a side effect of her killer biceps but she pulls you up with so much force that you stumble forward, crashing into her chest. “We have to stop meeting like this,” Hope chuckles, hands on your waist to steady you. Your cheeks flush even more if possible, and you try to redirect the conversation, stammering, “I- uh we- meet-ting ha-alf ye-yeah.” You mentally facepalm at your inability to speak around her, but Hope just giggles and says, “Yes, I do believe we have a meeting to get to.” You pull away from her and walk quickly, cheeks flushed, heart pounding, and mind clouded. “Uh, hey Y/N? You know our locker room is this way right?” “Right!” ~~ The awkward encounters didn’t stop there. And by now because of it, it was obvious to the entire team that you had the hots for Hope. Every time she was within a 6 feet radius of you, you would start blushing and become a stuttering mess. Hope thought it was adorable, Tobin and Sonnett and the rest of the team thought it was pathetic. That leads to training day, one day before your game against England. You jump when your sister slaps your back and takes a seat on the bench next to you. “Too busy thinking about your girlfriend?” Tobin inquires while tying her cleats. “She’s not my girlfriend, and no” You flush, your cheeks tinted scarlet. “Why don’t you just talk to her Y/N? Ask her out?” Tobin asks. You jump again when Sonnett, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation, lets out a scoff from behind you. “Please Toby, have you seen her? Y/N would trip over her own words before she can get a ‘hi’ out.” You roll your eyes in annoyance, no way denying it, as Emily plops down on the seat to your left. “I mean I just sucked it up and asked Chris out, I’m sure you can do it.” Tobin says while patting on your back. “Oh please, I strive to be how confident you are around Chris.” You state, glancing over at the field to where the forward was standing. “Just give it a shot Y/N, you never know how it could go.” “Fine, but we all know how it’s going to go. I’m gonna not be able to get the sentence out or she’s just going to flat out say no” You sigh, leaning your head on Tobin’s shoulder. “You don’t know that for sure,” Tobin says, scratching your head softly. “Fine.” You sigh again, looking over at the field, eyes widening and cheeks flushing when you lock eyes with none other than Hope Solo. Sonnett follows your gaze and beams, “Now go get your girl tiger.” “Maybe.” ~~ You didn’t go “get your girl”. You didn’t even speak to her. You just stayed as far away as humanly possible. However, it was during PK practice that you had no choice but to be around Hope. It was you versus Hope, and no one else. As you lined up to take a shot, Hope sent you a wink, and you nearly had a heart attack right then and there. Not to mention, you missed the ball (and therefore the goal) by a wide margin, falling flat on your back. Kelley rushes over shaking her head while trying to contain her laughter, and it takes one look from her for you to know what she’s going to say. “You’re pathetic” She chuckles, lending out a hand to pull you up. You take it graciously, cheeks flushed in embarrassment. You meet Hope’s eyes when you stand, sticking your tongue out at her when she bursts out laughing. You couldn’t lie, her laugh made your chest tighten up and butterflies explode in your stomach. Hope kept laughing, and you roll your eyes in annoyance as you walk back to take your PK again. You look down for as long as you can this time, only looking up right before you kick. This time, with no distractions, the ball hits the back of the net, flying right by Hope’s fingertips. You look up and shoot a cocky smirk at Hope, who just rolls her eyes and mimics you falling after missing the ball. You shoot her a glare as Sonnett bursts out laughing along with the rest of the team. Tobin comes up and ruffles your hair, laughing, “Nice going lil sis.” You give her a playful shove on the chest and walk over to Sonnett who just looks at you with a grin. “Don’t.” You threaten. “You looked like a cartoo- HEY!” You cut her off by dumping the remainder of Tobin’s cup of water onto her head. She looks at you with a glare and you know you’re in for it. Hope just stands back and watches you run away from Sonnett, who has a water bottle in hand, screaming bloody murder after you. She just watches and chuckles. ~~ It’s the midst England game now, and all was going well. The US was up by 1, you had scored once, and Press had scored once, essentially making Tobin the proudest human in existence. But in the 87th minute, Kelley drew a foul and England was granted a penalty kick, with Houghton stepping up to take it. You could see Hope jumping up and down in the goal, obviously a little nervous. When she’s scanning the field and her eyes meet yours, you get a wave of confidence and shoot her a wink. Her eyes widen and cheeks flush, but realizing that she was about to save a penalty, she quickly shook her head trying to rid it of her thoughts. The whistle blows and Houghton steps up to kick. Everyone held their breath as Hope dives left, but she overshot it, her face colliding with the ball instead of her hands. Nonetheless, she saves the pk, securing the 1 point lead for the US. Your heart slams in your chest as you realize she wasn’t getting up, and quickly the game is paused as the medical team goes to check on her. You’re by her side in a flash, grimacing at the stream of blood running down from her nose. As on member of the medical team fixes her nose, one goes to request a substitute but he’s yanked down by Hope before he can. “I am fine. I don’t need a substitute” She growls, quickly releasing the man’s arm. You just shake your head, rolling your eyes at the stubborn goalkeeper. Hope’s hand reaches out to you when she stands up, and you grab it without a second of hesitation, pulling her up. Ignoring the butterflies swarming inside of you, you say, “Just be careful okay?” “No promises,” She smiles, letting out a toothy grin. You give her a playful shove and make your way back to the field. ~~ After the game, you decide to bite the bullet and do something you’ve wanted to for weeks. You look over to Hope, and your eyes widen in surprise when you notice the woman was already making her way towards you. Quickly turning around, you see Sonnett, on her way by, who sends you a wink and mouths, “Good luck, ask her out” You take a deep breath and prepare yourself to turn around again and of course, just your luck, you slam right into her. “Again?” Hope asks with her eyebrows raised, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. You just stare at her, eyes wide and heart pumping erratically in your chest. “Well?” “Willyougoonadatewithme?” You breathe out. “Um? Run that by me again?” She chuckles, placing a hand on your cheek. You melt into her touch and gulp, taking a deep breath before you saying, “Will you go on a date with m-“ Hope cuts you off with a kiss, one that you quickly and happily reciprocate. Tobin and Sonnett watch from afar grinning, Tobin slapping a hand over Sonnett’s mouth to keep her from letting out a loud squeal. It’s the type of kiss that knocks all the air out of your lungs, and you feel like you’re floating and falling all at the same time. You pull back with a grin, “Is that a yes?” Hope just chuckles and pulls you in for another kiss, but before your lips meet, she whispers: “No. It’s a hell yes.”

a/n: also this is literally how i act around my crushes lmao 

[ouiouipparker]

~You Said You loved me~ R.B

Ricky Imagine-

In Which: Y/n is dating E.J. Caswell. Y/n realizes romance is just a fantasy but little does she know someone she didn’t expect to love her, loved her too

This is taken off of my wattpad account (ouiouipparker) so go check it out for more imagines

Word Count: 

Warnings: Slightly depressing, but mainly just fluff from our fav lil bean Ricky

Happy Reading!

You were always the type of person who loved romance. Whether it was Romance novels or Romantic comedies you were a fan.

So when you got your first boyfriend, you always wanted to do cheesy romantic things.

Ricky always teased you about it. He said you were too much of a 'Romantic' whatever the heck that meant.

Ricky was your best friend. He had been since you were in kindergarten.

You'd had a crush on him for a long time. Before you met E.J. who was your current boyfriend, you'd always imagine what it would have been like if you had told Ricky your feelings sooner. Before he developed feelings for Nini.

Nini Salazar-Roberts.

She was your other best friend.

You didn't tell her your feelings for Ricky because you knew she also had a crush on him. You didn't think you stood a chance.

You were right.

They got together a few months after Nini told you about her feelings.

And you knew he was crazy about her.

So you did what you had to.

You moved on.

That's when E.J. came into your life.

You two had gone to theatre camp over the summer and you really got to know him.

You being the romantic you were, developed a crush on him.

Somehow he liked you too.

Call it a summer fling but you knew there was something more. You two shared something that you had only ever felt with Ricky.

It wasn't like the other mini crushes you occasionally had when you tried to get over Ricky.

You'd fallen for him.

And you fell hard.

Things escalated quickly and you started dating E.J before the summer ended.

When September rolled around, you were finally happy.

You met someone new, someone that wasn't Ricky and you had finally moved on from Ricky and all the drama from last year.

You were optimistic about this year. Junior year was going to be your year.

You finally got a lead in the fall musical, you had your first boyfriend, and everything was good between you and Ricky.

That's all you wanted.

You prayed it would stay that way. But with your luck, you knew it was a matter of time before something got screwed up.

That's how it always happened in the Romance novels you were obsessed with.

The first few months of school had passed and you suddenly found yourself in the lunchroom with your friends.

You had been involved in the theatre program since you were a Freshman. So you had gotten close with a lot of the reoccurring members. Ashlyn had become one of your close friends.

She was throwing a party tonight and she had invited the cast from the fall musical.

You were excited to go and have fun with your friends.

E.J, however, wasn't excited.

He knew Ricky would be there, and he didn't trust him with how close you were with Ricky.

You assured him that you were just friends but he was still skeptical.

So he tried to convince you not to go to the party.

"Come on Y/n. Can we just stay home and watch movies on your couch please." E.J begs

You shake your head.

"I'm sorry E.J we can't. Ashlyn asked me to go to the party. Plus E.J you know how much this party means to her."

He sighs kissing you on your forehead.

"I know. I'm sorry. I just want to stay in and cuddle." E.J sighs.

"It's okay. We can watch movies next week alright?"

"I'm fine with whatever, as long as it's with you."

"You're so cheesy." You tease going on your tiptoes to give him a kiss.

"Says you. You're the one who's into all the romantic things." He smirks accepting your kiss.

'Okay but you love it."

"That is true."

******************************

After school, you went over to E.J's house and started to help Ashlyn set up for the party when you got a call from Ricky.

"Hey Rick! You coming to the party tonight?" You ask enthusiastically.

"Yeah. I know if I say no you'll drag me over there anyway." He laughs.

You smile even though he couldn't see you smiling.

Ricky knew you were though. He knew you too well.

When he broke up with Nini, he realized he dated the wrong girl.

Sure Nini was great, but she wasn't you.

His feelings for Nini went away when he realized he wanted to be with you.

He loved you and only you.

So he broke up with Nini, hoping you felt the same.

But of course, you just had to date E.J.

He knew he had missed his shot.

And he messed up with you and Nini.

But you were happy with E.J.

He didn't want to be the person that messed up your happiness.

So he shoved his feelings away. Just like you had done when he started dating Nini.

He vowed one day, he would tell you how he felt.

Because he knew you were the only one for him.

After a minute or so, it got quite on Ricky's end of the phone call.

"Ricky? You still there?" You ask.

"Hm, yeah. Yeah, I'm here."

"Okay. Um is there a reason you called or something. I mean I want to talk and all but I'm helping Ashlyn set up so um."

"Oh yeah, should I bring anything to the party?"

Before you could protest, Ashlyn took your phone.

"Just bring yourself, whatever games you have and whatever you want to bring is okay. Except for Alcohol or anything illegal."

You laugh taking your phone back from her.

"So um I'll see you at 6?"

"Yeah. I'll be there. See you soon Y/n."

You smile and hang up the call to continue helping Ashlyn.

"Thanks so much for helping out Y/n."

"Of course Ash." You smile.

"There are just a few things I still have to do but I think Big Red should be here soon so he can help me. E.J is in his room so you can just go in there whenever. I just need to bring these towels upstairs."

You nudge her when she mentioned Big Red. You knew she had a crush on him and you and Ricky had been trying to set them up ever since you two found out they liked each other.

"Shut up Y/n." Ashlyn laughs nudging you back.

"Here let me take those for you. I'll put these upstairs." You smile as you take the towels and start to head upstairs.

As you walk upstairs you hear voices coming out of E.J's room.

"You haven't told her!" You hear shouting.

"Nini, please. Don't say anything. I promise I'll tell her soon just, please. Don't tell Y/n. Let me do it."

"No E.J. You said you would tell her. I can't keep lying to her. She's my best friend."

"I know. Just, please. Do this for me. She shouldn't find out from someone else."

"Tell me what?" You ask.

E.J and Nini jump.

"Hey, babe. Um, its nothing. Right, Nini?"

You see E.J nudge Nini in the side and you knew he was hiding something.

Nini groans walking out of the room hugging you as she did.

"Yeah, its nothing. I'll see you downstairs." She smiles as she exits.

"Is everything okay E.J?" You ask once Nini had left.

"Everything's fine." He smiled motioning you to come over.

You sigh realizing you were just overthinking everything and hopped onto his bed.

He brings you to his chest and you get into a comfortable position

"I love you." He mumbles.

"I love you too E.J."

And you really did.

**********************************************

The party had been going well. You were having a lot of fun with your friends.

It had been an hour or so since you last saw E.J. You didn't want to be the clingy type but you wanted to be with him for at least some of the party.

You go upstairs to his room trying to find him and you knock on his door before entering anyway.

You freeze.

He was kissing some other girl you couldn't see.

Until they turned around and saw you in your heartbroken state.

E.J scrambles to get out of his bed.

And you saw Gina in his bed.

"Y/n, please. I'm sorry don't leave!" E.J says as he tries to go to you.

"You said you loved me E.J." You say softly.

"I'm sorry, please just hear me out."

"You lied to me!" You shout.

"Please Y/n-"

"How could you E.J." You choke out as tears drip down your cheeks.

You suddenly feel someone's presence behind you.

It was Ricky.

"What's going on?" He asks.

You shake your head running out of the door.

"Y/n please!"

But you were already out the door.

*******************************************************

Although you were a romantic, you knew that reality always came crashing when you least expect it to.

That's how all your love stories had ended.

That night, was the night yours had ended with E.J

You knew you couldn't trust him again, not after what he did.

And what's the point on continuing a relationship if you can't trust the other person.

So you did what you had to do.

You texted him one more time and ended it, blocking his phone number and all your social media accounts in the process.

You drove home and then you cried as soon as your head hit the pillow.

Maybe it was the music playing in the background, or what had just happened to you, but that night you realized fundamental things about love.

As you cried, you realized happily ever after was never real. It would never happen to you.

You realized you had set your expectations too high. Romance was never what it seemed. It wasn't real.

You hear footsteps, and you saw the shadow of your best friend at the corner of your eye.

"I guess you found out.." She says softly.

You were too hurt to say anything so it stays quiet for a few minutes.

"Was this what you were going to tell me today." You ask.

She nods.

You start crying and she held you as you cried

You went to bed that night crying shutting everyone out.

It had been a few days since you found out E.J cheated on you.

You hadn't left your room, Ricky and Nini being the only ones allowed inside your room.

Currently, Nini was there sitting on your bed as you binged an unhealthy amount of RomComs and ate ice cream out of the pint.

"Y/n I have to tell you something, but please don't be mad." Nini blurts out randomly.

"What is it Ni?" You ask.

"I found E.J kissing Gina in the theatre a few days ago and told him if he didn't tell you I would. I know I should have told you earlier I'm sorry but there was never a right time to tell you-"

You squeeze her hand which was your way of saying you weren't mad at her.

"I'm not mad at you Nini. I haven't been honest with you either."

"What haven't you told me Y/n?" She asks.

You sigh scared to admit it out loud.

"Before I dated E.J and before you dated Ricky, I liked Ricky. I liked him for a few years but I didn't do anything about it because I knew you liked him too and I didn't want to hurt you by telling you. But apart of me never fully got over him. E.J helped me get over him temporarily and now that this happened, I don't know how long it will be before those feelings for Ricky come back." You confess.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Nini asks.

"Because Ni, you liked him. So much. And I knew if I told you, you would give up your chance with Ricky for me even though I never stood a chance and I would have been the reason why you got hurt. I never want that for you. So I hid my feelings."

Nini groans out in frustration before smacking your head lightly.

"Ow! Nini, what was that for?" You ask.

"Y/n, you know I love you but I swear, you're so stupid sometimes." Nini laughs.

"Hey!" You pouted.

"Did I ever say why Ricky broke up with me?" She asks softly.

"Because he couldn't say I love you." You respond.

She nods.

"Yes, because he didn't love me, he loved you."

"Wait, that can't be true. He never loved me, it was always you-"

"He loved you y/n. I think he still does. That's why he could never say it to me."

"That's impossible."

"Okay fine. The next time Ricky comes over, I want you to ask him if he ever loved you. If he says yes and I know he will you owe me $20." Nini says.

"Fine, deal In fact I'll call him right now to come over just to watch you lose."

"Okay. Watch him say 'of course, anything for you Y/n'."

You stick your tongue out at her childishly.

You pick up your phone to call Ricky.

You hover over his contact and he picks up after the second ring.

"Hi, Ricky. Um, can you come over, please? I need you."

That was true. You needed him.

"Yeah, of course, I'm on my way, is everything alright?" He asks.

"Yeah. I'm fine. I'm sorry I know this is last minute, I just really need you, Rick."

"Of course Y/n. Anything for you."

Nini smirks as you stick your tongue out at her.

"I'll be there in 10." He says

"Okay. See you then."

Ricky hangs up.

"Of course, Anything for you Y/n." Nini mimics.

"Shut up Ni." You laugh

"I'm getting my $20." Nini cheers.

"That doesn't mean anything. There's no way Ricky loves me." ***********************************************************************************

"Look Y/n, I love you. I love you more than a best friend. It's always been you."

It had been 20 minutes since Ricky came over.

30 seconds since he said the words you wanted him to say for 4 years.

You waited for him to say those 3 words for so long and it was finally happening.

You were shocked, to say the least.

He sat on your bed, his fingers running through his hair.

You were scared to admit you loved him too. Because he could leave you any second.

He could hurt you like E.J had.

You were terrified to give Ricky that side of you. To let your walls down again.

"I know its bad timing with what E.J did to you but I had to tell you. Before I lost my chance again."

You're still speechless. So you did what you had been wanting to do since 8th grade.

You kissed him.

"I love you too Ricky Bowen. Always have always will. "

"Ha pay up Y/n!" Nini shouts.

"Shut up Nini." You laugh before going to kiss Ricky again.

"Can we do that a thousand more times?" Ricky smirks.

"Who's the romantic one now?" You tease him.

He rolled his eyes.

"Shut up and kiss me."

************************************************************

Thanks for reading my first imagine on this account!

xx

-ouiouipparker

[seblos]

there’s not a star in heaven that we can’t reach - ch 5/10

chapter title: well, are you busy tonight?

word count: 5,534

notes: tw // mention of animal death

[one | two | three | four | five | six | seven | eight | nine (coming soon)]

read on ao3

It’s Friday, which means it’s another early morning dance lesson with Seb. So far they have had two together: the last Friday when Carlos first mentioned it, and the previous Tuesday.

Seb had definitely been improving, nearly nailing the entire ‘Bop to the Top’ choreo. They had decided to practice that song more outside of rehearsals because they practiced ‘Stick to the ‘Status Quo’ more often in rehearsal. Carlos was constantly running around that he would never be able to assist any time Rico and Seb ran ‘Bop to the Top’ during that time unless he was teaching them something new.

The few glimpses Carlos was able to get from Seb during rehearsal, though, it seemed like he was struggling every time. It was strange since Seb had been doing well in their private rehearsals, but it became very apparent to both Seb and Carlos that Rico was having trouble leading. Carlos at one point considered inviting Rico to the private rehearsals but decided against. He might in the future, but for now… it was just nice to spend time alone with Seb even if it was just for the show.

Today, though. Today was different, and for one reason only.

Homecoming.

Seb had been telling Carlos and Natalie that Wednesday during lunch about how Nini didn’t want to go to homecoming anymore because she had no one to go with, and that’s when it hit him. He had no idea if Seb was planning on going to homecoming, but maybe, maybe this was his chance to finally ask him out. Or, at least ask him to the dance. Same thing though, right?

He recalled the conversation he had with Ashlyn over FaceTime the previous night about possibly asking Seb to homecoming. Of course, she was 100% behind it, but Carlos still had doubts, even with her constant assurance that Seb almost definitely liked him back.

“I see the way he watches you during rehearsal”, Ashlyn had told him, which had also made Carlos immediately blush like crazy. “If our choreographer was anyone else, there’s no way he would voluntarily go to school early.”

“He already wakes up at 5:30 in the morning, though. He’s passionate about dance and performance, maybe he just genuinely wants to improve!” he had countered with.

“I’m sure he does, Carlos but I don’t know if he would have accepted so quickly if it didn’t mean hanging out with someone he likes,” Ashlyn had explained, which earned her an eye roll from him. “I love you, but you’re crazy. Why are you trying to deny it anyway?”

That comment had left Carlos wordless. Honestly, he didn’t know why he kept deflecting the possibility of Seb liking him. He knew what Ash was saying was probably true, but that little bit of uncertainty was holding him back from telling Seb the things he wanted to. It was the first time he had met someone passionate about the same things he was, and he so easily clicked with. He didn’t want to go and ruin that. 

And yet, every moment he shared with Seb felt real. The looks, the conversations, and subtle touches, it was like they were both holding back from something.

Carlos didn’t want to hold back anymore. 

Their rehearsal ran as normal, once again running through the same dance sequence. Seb had nearly perfected it at this point with Carlos, but maybe that was only because he had both sides of this choreo memorized front to back. That’s why dancing with Seb was nice; he never had to think too much about how close the two of them were together or what to do if either of them messed up. This was his field, and not even a cute boy and his cute smile, riffing, and commentary, while they rehearsed, could take away from that.

“You’re improving,” Carlos grins when they sit down together after ending because he is. 

“Am I?” 

“Yeah. At least, with me you are. You seem to still be struggling a bit during rehearsal.”

Seb blushes, and Carlos hopes what he said wasn’t shady (he didn’t mean for it to be, of course.) Thankfully, though, Seb keeps talking.

“I mean, I don’t get it. When I dance with you it’s easy. When I dance with Ryan, I’ve got two left feet.”

“You just gotta drill it, Seb,” he tells him with a laugh, although he wonders if Seb’s phrasing was intentional. Does he mean during rehearsal in general, or does he mean it’s hard as Sharpay and Ryan, but not as Seb and Carlos?

“I mean, I practice for like an hour every night in our barn!” Seb defends. “My parents think I’m bonding with the livestock.” He leans over slightly as he says it, looking Carlos right in the eye. They both laugh, but it makes his stomach flutter all the same.

Seb then gets up, placing his water bottle back into his backpack as he prepares to pack up for the first period. “I need more practice with someone who… actually knows how to lead.”

It confuses him at first because Carlos thought that was what they were doing. The way Seb says it almost implies something more though, and he wonders if this might be him trying to drop a hint. Either way, hint or no hint, Carlos decides in that few seconds he has that this is his moment. 

He stands up too, taking a deep breath. “Well, are you busy tonight?”

“Tonight?” Seb asks, and Carlos curses himself internally at the genuine confusion from Seb. Of course, it wasn’t a hint, it was just Seb being Seb. 

He decides to go with it anyway. Too late now. “Yeah, y’know, homecoming.”

Seb’s expression is blank for a moment, but Carlos holds his smile, praying that the universe will just give him this. 

And, apparently, the universe was listening, because a smile grew on Seb’s face. “You mean, like, you and I… dancing together… in front of like all the non-theatre kids?”

The emphasis he put on each word really solidified the idea in Carlos's mind, making his stomach flutter again. The idea of him and Seb slow dancing together not for rehearsal but just because they could was almost too much to handle.

 “As far as I know, that’s how homecoming works. This would be my first time going” he says, and he hopes Seb won’t back out now. 

Seb turns around and finishes zipping up his backpack, and Carlos feels like he really messed up. He wants to apologize for making him uncomfortable or getting the wrong message. Before he can get the words out of his mouth, and after the longest 10 seconds of Carlos's life, Seb turns back around. This time, his grin is impossible to miss.

“Text me a pic of what you’re wearing,” he says, eyeing Carlos for a moment before walking out of the room.

Carlos feels like his heart might explode. Seb had just agreed to go to homecoming with him.

It all seems too good to be true.

—

And maybe it was because almost 3 hours into the dance and Seb still hasn’t shown up. No text, no apology. 

Nothing.

He should have known.

Carlos feels numb. He should have known. All day, he had a sick feeling, but he blamed it on nerves. When he had gotten to the dance and Seb wasn’t there, he tried not to think too much of it. Even when Gina showed up with EJ as her date, he tried not to think about it. But they were too far in, now, for this Seb to be late or for this to be an accident.

Of course, Seb was too good to be true. How could he fathom the idea that someone like Seb could actually like him? Just when he thought that his personality and his passions might not be too much to handle, the one person who was able to make him feel that way wasn’t here. Not like Carlos could blame him. 

Maybe it wasn’t him. Maybe it was just Seb being too nervous to dance in front of the majority of the student body. But in that case, wouldn’t he have sent Carlos a text? Or not agreed in the first place? No, he knew what he was getting into. Seb really stood him up.

Ashlyn could see Carlos spiraling. Every time a couple passed them, holding hands or dancing, he sunk deeper into his chair.

“He’ll show up, okay? Maybe he just hit traffic,” she says, putting her hand on his arm in an attempt to comfort him.

Carlos furrows his eyebrows sadly. “We live in Salt Lake City. There hasn’t been traffic since the 2002 Winter Olympics.”

“Don’t assume Seb stood you up, okay? Maybe he was just in a farming accident.”

“Not helping,” Carlos sighs. Even if he’s upset, he doesn’t want him hurt either, obviously. If anything, he wants it to be his fault for his absence, not Seb’s. He’d rather know he ditched him on purpose than being rushed to a hospital right now or something. 

After a few more minutes of sadly staring at his phone while Ashlyn tries to comfort him, as well as more drama between EJ, Gina, and Ricky, Carlos stands up from his chair. He’s tired of moping and tired of dragging down Ash with him. That, plus the awkward quietness from Big Red and EJ after Gina and Ricky left is not the energy he wants to be around anymore.

“I’m gonna go get something to drink. Want anything?” he asks her, who smiles and shakes her head politely. 

A slow song starts to play as Carlos approaches the table, and he tries not to think about how it was one of many that he and Seb could have danced together to.

“What can I get you?” a voice asks, and for once Carlos is thankful that Mr. Mazzara is interrupting his thought process.

“Something wet?”

“Something wrong?” he asks as he prepares the drink.

The question catches him by surprise. “You think I’m actually going to confide in you?” Why does Mr. Mazzara, the person who told him that he needed to find more friends, actually care about why he’s upset?

And oh great, here he goes thinking about Seb again, and that day in the bomb shelter. The day that Carlos realized he had a crush on the boy. The way his heart would skip a beat when Seb grabbed his hand comfortingly when Carlos had told him what Mr. Mazzara had said, and how his stomach fluttered with butterflies from the way Seb looked at him while they sang. How he had called Seb’s overalls that day cute, and the blushy look on his face when he did so.

Even today in their chemistry class, the two kept looking at each other and smiling instead of doing their lab like they were supposed to. Seb had even whispered “see you tonight” as they left class that day.  

It all was too much. Now instead of butterflies in his stomach, it just twisted with painful nausea. 

“I contain multitudes, Carlos.”

Carlos doesn’t say anything for a moment, Instead, he turns back to stare at everyone coupled together on the dance floor. He wants to scream “what isn’t wrong?!” but he’s still not really sure if Mr. Mazzara actually cares, and honestly he’s so tired by this point of moping over this. This is his first time at homecoming, he’s supposed to feel at home here with everyone dancing. Yet here he is, no idea how to act.

“He didn’t show up,” Carlos says finally. “My date.” Saying those words makes his heart hurt. Carlos wants so badly to not accept it, but there was no more denying it by this point. Seb was his date, and he didn’t show up. He hears Mr. Mazzara let out a small “oh” and it just makes him laugh sadly. 

“It’s my fault. I’m the fool who thought he’d actually dance in public with me,” he explains, shaking his head because it doesn’t matter. Not anymore, anyway. 

“Well, the night’s not over.” Carlos turns back around, and Mr. Mazzara is holding out the plastic cup of punch. He takes it wordlessly. 

“Look, uh,” Mr. Mazzara starts, barely making eye contact with Carlos, but his voice sounds genuine. “We’ve all seen your moves. You don’t need a dance partner to dance.” With that, he walks over to the other students waiting for a drink, leaving Carlos confused but feeling strangely better.

He stands there for another minute instead of heading back to the table as the slow song that was previously playing comes to an end and the familiar intro notes of one of his favorite songs when he was younger begins to play. Carlos can’t help but stare at the dance floor, the words of his chemistry teacher ringing in his head, but this time he doesn’t mind their presence. 

Nothing is stopping him from walking right onto that dance floor by himself.

And so, with a deep breath, he does.

He gets a few surprised looks as he marches out, but no one is making fun of him, so Carlos closes his eyes as he sways side to side. At first, he imagines Seb dancing with him, but the image disappears in his mind and is just replaced with the music and the lights and all the surrounding noise.

 He keeps sort of swaying, although he knows he could actually start to dance. Just being out here though is already making the gutted feeling drain from his body.

It shouldn’t surprise him, honestly. Dance has always been his outlet. But in a way, he feels like he’s taking back a moment that was almost a ruined memory. 

‘Cuz I was born to be brave

I know who I am inside, and I won't apologize

Made my mistakes, 

and they gave me wings to fly to my castle in the sky

The music is pulsing through Carlos's body as he barely registers hearing EJ’s voice, just before he opens his eyes as Ashlyn grabs his arms, beginning to dance with him. He has his eyes open now, and every bad thought he had earlier in the dance was gone from his mind. All he felt was a pure rush of joy as they bounced around together. It was such a quick change Carlos almost felt dizzy.

The more they danced together, the closer everyone else got to the two of them. And yet, not for a moment did Carlos worry that they had malicious intentions. Everyone just seemed so genuinely happy to be in the moment, and the energy is something Carlos has never experienced before. It feels like the same way he feels in the dance studio, but with everyone feeling the exact same as him. It’s nauseating, but Carlos will take this  nauseous feeling over the one from earlier.

And then, somehow, at the beginning of the last chorus right after the musical interlude in the song, Carlos found himself in the middle of everyone. It was genuinely surreal the way everyone was pointing at him. For once, it really did feel like he was the star of something. He didn’t need Seb or anyone else to make him feel special, because he was. Or, at least at that moment he was. 

He was joyfully exhausted from dancing by the time the song ended. Even with heavy breathing, Carlos couldn’t help but to grin wider than he had all night as Ashlyn pulled him into a hug

“I mean, that was amazing,” she said while she squeezed him, and Carlos really couldn’t stop smiling by this point. 

That is until he noticed something (someone, actually) out of the corner of his eye.

Ashlyn followed his gaze as he stood frozen in place, before squeezing his arm reassuringly as Seb Matthew-Smith crossed the gym floor to meet Carlos.

Neither of them said a word as Seb slowly got closer, although he could see the blonde boy taking it all in. Carlos must not have noticed when Seb walked in. Clearly, he had arrived at some point amidst the song judging by the soft, starstruck look on his face. Either that, or it was the suit Carlos was wearing, which matched perfectly with Seb’s. 

Before he can figure out what to say, Seb talks first. “Looks like I missed a lot,” he says softly, meeting Carlos's eyes. He can’t help but feel his heart leap to his throat at how happy Seb looks. 

“The dance started three hours ago,” Carlos responds in an attempt to ignore the feeling, and he notices how hurt he sounds. He is hurt, and he’s scared for whatever excuse Seb is about to give.

Seb winces a bit. “We lost one of our cows,” he explains.

“You could have texted.”

“We have bad reception at the barn,” Seb says, and he sounds so desperate that Carlos almost wants to cry. He really did want to come. It makes Carlos's chest tighten. 

“I’m really sorry about being so late,” he says, and he’s still looking at Carlos right in the eye. They’re so dark in the dance lighting they almost look black, but he can see the tiny bit of blue reflecting in the light that is searching, begging for his forgiveness on this. 

“I’m really sorry about your cow,” Carlos says finally because he believes it. Maybe he just wants so badly for it to be true, but Seb is here in his matching suit even though they only have an hour left of the dance. He’s here for Carlos, and Carlos can’t just let go of that. After tonight, he deserves a final dance and a happily ever after with the boy he likes. 

“Hey,” Seb smiles, softly taking Carlos's hands, and that nauseous, butterfly feeling is back in his stomach. “At least our ties match.”

They both laugh softly, and Carlos swears Seb glances down at his mouth. It makes Carlos mirror the action, and he considers just leaning in and kissing Seb right there. The jittery energy from the previous song is mostly gone, replaced by the nerves from being around Seb, and he’s reminded that he’s in the middle of the gym surrounded by their entire class. 

Instead, he leads the other boy to the center of the dance floor, pulling him into a slow dance. It’s different from all their private rehearsals. They aren't Sharpay and Ryan here, they’re just Seb and Carlos. His arm is wrapped around Seb, and they’re slowly spinning, just holding each other.

And yeah, he doesn’t need a dance partner to dance. But it’s so much better with one.

—

The dance is winding down, and Carlos is just basking in the past hour that he did get with Seb. They made the most of it, not sitting down until the last 15 minutes and instead dancing to each song that came, whether it was slow or fast, and pulling Ashlyn, Big Red, and even EJ out to join them. Whether it was the lasting effects of ‘Born to be Brave’ or dancing with Seb, or heck, even the words of Mr. Mazzara, Carlos wasn’t for a moment embarrassed or anxious about what he was doing. He just danced.

They ended up back at the table as the crowd dispersed and people slowly began to leave. Carlos was tired, sure, but he was sitting next to Seb and they were holding hands and talking to Ashlyn and Big Red and EJ. He kind of didn’t want this night to ever end.

Carlos's phone buzzes with a notification, and he pulls it out of his pocket to check it with his free hand. He’s expecting it to be a text from his mother asking about the dance and when he would be home, so it surprises him when he’s met with multiple texts under Seb’s contact name. (Especially considering Seb’s phone is sitting in front of him on the table, and he hasn’t touched it since they sat down a few minutes ago.) He swipes open the notifications nonetheless though.

The first two texts are a response to the photo Carlos took in the mirror in his suit. 

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: oh wow

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: you look great! :) & i think i have something that matches perfectly! <3

It makes Carlos bite his lip as he tries to hide his smile, though he can feel his cheeks burning. He continues to scroll through the texts. The next few are clearly distressed, and Carlos can imagine that’s when Seb realized he would be late.

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: carlos im so sorry i might be a bit late. georgies favorite cow died and she was supposed to be my ride but she’s taking it hard.

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: parents are dealing with the cow, josie is watching isaac, so im trying to convince cohyn rn to drive me. im so so sorry

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: i dont know if youre getting any of these but i really hope you are

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: carlos i get it if youre mad but please respond if youre getting these 

Carlos's heart hurts for past-Seb. He’s so absorbed in reading them that he doesn’t even notice the blonde glancing over at him curiously.

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: just call me troy bolton bc im so late you shouldnt forgive me but im really hoping you will

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: im serious though. im on my way right now.

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: save me a dance?

“What are you smiling at?” Seb asks, and Carlos looks up in surprise to see the other boy studying him with soft eyes. He doesn’t seem concerned, just genuinely curious. 

Carlos flips around the screen so Seb can see. “Your messages finally came through,” he smiles, and Seb’s cheeks flush as he reads them.

“I just kept trying to resend them the entire way over and I guess they finally decided to,” he explains. “Remind me to never panic-text you ever again.”

“Please,” Carlos squeezes his hand. “It’s cute.”

Before Seb can come up with a reply, Ashlyn interrupts. “Glad to see there are no hard feelings,” she grins, looking between them, and the two of them blush, as they realize that she, Big Red, and EJ witnessed the entire conversation. Well, kind of. EJ is more concentrated on his phone, and Big Red just looks lost.

“Yeah,” Carlos is smiling softly, now matched with Seb, and he squeezes his hand again. “I don’t want it to be over yet.”

Ashlyn shrugs. “Who says it has to.”

If she didn’t have their attention yet she does now. 

“What do you mean?” Carlos asks, tone switching from soft to intrigued. They both turned their heads to face Ashlyn.

She shrugs again, this time with a grin. “I mean, it’s not that late,” she says with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “If your parents aren’t expecting you home… anyone up for ice cream?”

Both Seb and Carlos grin at the same time. Even Big Red, who finally seems to have caught on to the tail end of the conversation, looks interested.

“I’m never not up for that,” Carlos says, and Seb nods excitedly.

Big Red bites his lip. “Who’s gonna drive, though?” he asks. “Ricky took my car when he left with Gina, and you guys only have your permits, right?” 

They all look at each other for a minute, before four heads are turning to face EJ, who looks up for his phone when he notices them all staring at him.

“What?” EJ asks, clearly having missed the entire past five minutes of conversation.

Ashlyn tilts her head, still grinning. “Wanna drive us to get ice cream since I’m your favorite cousin?” she asks, although EJ doesn’t look convinced.

“And you end the night on a good note!” Seb adds leaning forward.

Either he actually considers Seb says, or he just feels like he can’t say no to him because come on, it’s Seb, because EJ rolls his eyes and digs his keys out of his pocket.

“Fine,” he says, and the four cheer silently. “But make it quick.”

Seb and Carlos turn to look at each other. Yeah, there’s no way they’re making it quick. 

—

The two are sitting on a bench outside of the ice cream shoppe later that night,. Ricky came back to get Big Red, since he needed to give his car back, and they had both turned down a ride from Ashlyn and EJ.

Now it was just them.

Carlos really doesn’t want this night to end. Everything that has happened today, even with Seb arriving late, has been built up ever since they started getting close together that day after rehearsal. It’s almost like the feeling of post-show depression. He just feels so safe and happy at this moment with Seb that if he has to leave, he doesn’t know if he’ll ever get this feeling.

But, because he does eventually java to go home (and probably sooner rather than later), and he can see Seb looking very cute as he’s trying to hold back a yawn, Carlos pulls out his phone with his free hand to text his mom to come pick him up.

Oh yeah, they’re holding hands. They basically had been all night, ever since Seb took his hand when he arrived back in the gym of East High. It’s barely been an hour since then, but it’s felt like a lifetime holding Seb’s hand at every moment.

That safety with Seb is what allows him to feel okay holding his hand in public. If they get weird looks or glares, Carlos doesn’t notice. He doesn’t even care what anyone thinks anymore tonight, because he’s here tonight, he’s the and he’s the most himself he’s ever been. Everything is okay. 

And Seb, of course. Seb is okay, too. Better than okay. Seb is wonderful. 

“Georgie is on her way if you want us to drive you home,” Seb tells him, and Carlos snaps out of his daydream. He realizes the entire time he’s just been sitting there, staring at his phone and thinking about his hand in Seb’s long enough that the screen has gone dark.

He smiles softly at the blonde. “Yeah, okay,” he says quietly, swiping open his phone again to tell his mom that he’s getting a ride home. 

It’s so quiet around them, the only sound being the employees closing the ice cream shoppe and the few cars pulling out of the lot where the store is located. And yet, it’s a comfortable silence, just the two of them sitting there together, soaking in the last of the night together. 

“I’m glad you didn’t leave before I got there tonight,” Seb tells him, and it breaks Carlos's heart to think how guilty he must feel about what happened.

Carlos squeezes his hand. “I’m glad you were able to show up.”

Seb chews on the edge of his lip, before smiling. It’s different from his usual excited grin, the one that could light up a stage on its own. This one is softer and more genuine like he can’t help it. “Yeah. Me too.”

“And our ties do match,” Carlos laughs quietly, referencing what Seb had said earlier. 

Neither of them say anything. Carlos doesn’t know what else to say. Seb deserves a whole essay, but he doesn’t have enough words to describe the way he makes Carlos feel, like how his chest tightens like his heart is going to explode. Or how it feels like his face is constantly heated near him, but its never uncomfortable. 

Nothing feels uncomfortable around Seb.

Like a natural reflex, his face inches closer to Seb’s. Carlos doesn’t mean to, exactly, but he doesn’t pull away either. And neither does Seb. 

It’s entirely possible that Seb wants to kiss him right now. Carlos thinks he wants to kiss Seb. Honestly, he doesn’t really know. He’s never kissed anyone before; he doesn't know what it would be like or what that feeling is supposed to be. It feels like there’s heat pooling in his stomach, though, and he keeps inching closer. If this isn’t the feeling you get when you want to kiss someone, Carlos doesn’t know what is. 

He’s about to just bite the bullet and lean in all the way when a familiar car pulls into the lot. Before she can see them (or maybe she already has; they’ll find out when they get in the car) they pull away from each other. Both Carlos and Seb are blushing intensely, but Seb still shoots him that same soft smile before they get up to go in the car.

They both greet Georgie, who’s already in her pajamas, including an Ariana Grande shirt that he's pretty sure he's seen her brother wear, shark print pants, and slippers, as well as her hair in two braids. Carlos can’t blame her, to be honest. 

He slides down in his usual seat behind the driver's seat (it’s easier for Seb to be able to face him that way from the passenger's seat.) To Carlos's surprise, though, instead of getting in the front seat like normal, Seb joins him in the backseat. 

“Taking the middle seat, huh, Sebby?” Georgie teases, catching his eye in the rearview mirror. “Usually you’ll do anything to not have to sit there.”

“Yes, because there’s no reason for me to sit in the middle when Paisley and Sophia are so much smaller than me,” Seb argues. “But that’s only when I have to sit next to you. This is different.”

She just hums before pulling out of the lot. “I’m happy to see you two ending the night together, at least.”

Seb’s hand finds Carlos's next to him, and he laces their fingers together. “Yeah,” he says softly, looking at Carlos instead of Georgie. “Us too.” 

Georgie asks a few questions about homecoming, accompanied by the typical car playlist. Carlos answers a few of the questions with Seb, but for the most part, he just sits back and enjoys their last moments together before the weekend. He doesn’t want to think about how he probably won’t get to see the other boy in person again until Monday, considering all their weekend homework mixed with Seb’s chores and Carlos's dance lessons. 

They arrive at Carlos's house what feels like quicker than normal, and he unbuckles his seatbelt reluctantly. 

“Thank you for the ride home,” he tells Georgie, who gives him a two finger salute. Before he can say anything to Seb, the blonde is gesturing for him to go out. “Let me walk you to the door,” he tells Carlos.

As the two walk to the porch, he tries to figure out what else he can say to Seb. Truly, words cannot describe how genuinely magical this night has been. 

“Thank you for everything tonight,” he decides on, facing the other boy as they reach the front of his door. 

“Don’t thank me, Carlos,” Seb says softly, biting his lip, and Carlos allows himself to memorize his face at this moment for the last time.

Just as he’s about to open the door, Seb leans in kissing Carlos softly on the cheek.

“Goodnight, Carlos.”

He ignores the heat rushing to that spot, eyes focused on Seb as he smiles. “Goodnight Seb.”

Seb nods briefly, his smile growing a bit before he turns. He gives Carlos a quick, shy wave before climbing down the steps of the porch and back to Georgie’s car, getting in the passenger seat this time. 

Carlos watches for a moment as they pull out, before turning to open the door. 

His mother is sitting on the couch in the front room as he steps in. Her glasses perched on the edge of her nose, and her hair tied back as she reads a book, the light shining softly from the lamp next to her.

 She looks up at Carlos as he walks in. “Good night?”

“Yeah,” Carlos nods. “Amazing. Buenas noches, mamá.”

“Buenas noches, mijo. Get a good sleep, you have an early dance lesson tomorrow.”

He nods, shuffling upstairs. The energy from the night has been accompanied now by exhaustion, and Carlos feels like he’s about to collapse. He forces himself to quickly shower, do his skincare, and brush his teeth before he collapses into his bed.

As he sets his alarm for dance the next morning, he notices a new text notification.

From: Seb Matthew-Smith: tonight was amazing!! do it again sometime? <3

And even though nobody can see, Carlos smiles to himself 

From: Carlos Rodriguez: yeah, definitely. <3

Carlos hits send, then turns on his sleep playlist before switching off his phone and plugging it in next to him. 

He’ll talk more to Seb in the morning.

For now, he allows the moment of Seb kissing him to replay in his head. And with that, Carlos falls asleep with the feeling of Seb lips on his cheek.

It’s great to be in love on Valentine’s Day.

[justkimberley]

HSMTMTS Thoughts Episode 9

Episode 1   Episode 2  Episode 3 Episode 4   Episode 5  Episode 6  Episode 7  Episode 8

  (~1200 words)

Oh my gosh I can’t believe there’s only one episode left!

I’m a big fan of the peek into the future, flash back 8 hours

I saw someone make a post about how the song Ricky plays makes them think about “I fell in love with the pizza girl” from Jonas and now that’s all I can hear too

Joshua Basset’s voice is beautiful.

Big Red won’t let Rikcy finish his song and I’m sad about it.

So Gina moved the day after Tech Rehearsal

What did those boys talk about in the car if Ricky  didn’t tell Big Red about the kiss??

Or did Big Red just forget?

What does the necklace say???????

Why didn’t they just think of the gym first??

“This is the first time I’ve been cast as the lead on purpose,” “But it won’t be the last,” Yes supportive Miss Jen

Break-A-Leg-O-Grams are being advertised on the bulletin board behind Ricky and Nini talking and I think that’s amazing

Ricky is reading all of Nini’s signals wrong, spit it out Nini!

The whole time Ricky’s talking he’s searching Nini’s face to see if he’s reading the situation right. Newsflash! He’s not.

“We’ve got mystery flowers people!” “Not from me! Sorry,” “It’s okay,”

That was cute

“Just be you Ashlyn, you’re enough,” Aww she was going for the hug and he high fived her. Big Red’s really not good at picking up signals (but then again is anybody? Especially anybody in high school?)

All of the lines they pick are so good! 

“You’re my guys, and this is our team,” - Red. I’m glad he’s happy as part of the gang.

“What if you want to try something really new and it’s a total disaster and all your friends laugh at you,” - Ricky this gives us insight into how he’s feeling and it makes his mess-up in “Getcha Head in the Game” (which was totally reasonable) even more heartbreaking

“Do you ever feel like there’s this whole other person inside of you just looking for a way to come out,” - Nini. I mean, we been knew that Nini felt like that.

“Do the Romp, and strut your stuff,” - Carlos. Fantastic he’s the choreographer 

��My shower head is very impressed with me,” - Kourtney. She feels like she’s just got a good voice, and nothing else

“I’m proud to call you my sister” - EJ. Ok, this part actually was so sweet. EJ really loves Ashlyn, and is really happy to have her as a support. Not to mention contrast that with how exasperated he looked in the beginning of the series when Ashlyn said “Actually, EJ’s my cousin,”

“My nail beds are history” - Ashlyn. Ok I don’t really know why she picked this line. Ashlyn’s usually the sensitive one. I guess maybe she wanted to just have fun for once.

“Sharpay’s kinda cute too,” - Seb. Yes self-confidence

“Yeah so is a mountain lion, but you don’t pet it,” fun little group dynamic here

“We’re all in this together” Miss Jen. What a sweet finishing line.

Ricky going over choreography with Carlos right before the show starts! He’s adorable and I love my baby boy.

THis harmony in the song is great (For a Moment? I think it’s called?)

Classic staring when you’re not looking trope

Also that stage makeup on Ricky is great, Joshua Bassett in eyeliner is *chef’s kiss*

Ricky’s dad is so excited to be there and then Lynne comes up and he just loses all his confidence and excitement. I have a feeling that she wasn’t a great wife to him. I mean yeah it would be kind of awkward to introduce your ex-wife to a lady that you flirted with but Lynne brought her whole boyfriend so there’s nothing to be awkward about. Also the “Jennifer, Miss Jen, this is my wif- Ricky’s mom, Lynne” I just want to give him a hug.

Also Lynne, what high school drama production has assigned seats??

Ricky peeking out from backstage to see his parents, he’s so happy and excited :( it makes what’s going to happen even sadder

“Dim the lights,” **american national anthem plays (or some kind of patriotic song, I don’t know, I’m Canadian)**

We’ve been robbed, start of something new is playing in the background as Mazarra and Jen haggle for tech support/robotics stickers

“Never touch me” - the way he said that was amazing and I loved it.

I like that they present the joke lines directly to the audience, it’s funny.

Who is EJ on the phone with? Is it Gina

“Need a hand?” How many have you got?”

The little slap of Big Red’s hand when he goes to touch the soundboard

“Yeahhh… that was two counts of 8, but keep drilling it though,”

EJ winking at the crowd

“A friend bought me a last minute flight back,” was it EJ???

Gina’s dance, fantastic!

SEBBBB!!!!THat death drop spin thing, amazing!!!!! GUitar riff!

Ricky needs to figure himself out a little better.

“Ehh, I guess I kind of invited her?”

Why is “Getcha Head in the Game” after “Stick to the Status Quo”??

Why did his mom invite Todd?

I mean everyone on tumblr’s already kind of ripped her a new one but seriously?? Why would you bring your boyfriend who your son’s never met before to his musical which he was so excited about (and not tell him on top of that). Ricky’s first performance is not the time he wants to meet his mom’s boyfriend for the first time. Also she should know that Ricky’s having a hard time with the divorce right? Like that was a terrible move.

Ricky’s not okay. I’m thinking he’s having some sort of anxiety attack or something along those lines. I’m very annoyed with his mom for doing that to him.

“It’s a long story, has anyone seen Nini? I could really use a pep talk right now. My mom’s new boyfriend decided to show up and I want to punch a wall, I feel like I need a miracle to face act two”

“Nini’s in a quick change booth right now, she seems a little nervous,” “Wait, why, what happened?”

Ricky cares about Nini so much. He’s in the middle of what I think is an anxiety attack and his concern is why Nini’s “a little nervous”

“Uhh, I thought I was doing a good thing but I think it backfired. You see that lady with the clipboard out there? That’s the dean from the performing arts school she was looking at,” “You invited her?” “Ricky, you look like you’re shaking, do you need to sit down?” “Actually I do, excuse me,”

“HEy!” ** aggressively takes shirt off ** (not going to lie for a moment I thought they were going to fight and I was like woah! Since when do we fight?) “I can’t blow this for Nini,”

EJ is so hesitant to take the Troy jersey from Ricky. I wonder what is stopping EJ from doing it?

“Has anyone seen my glasses?” On her head! Amazing! Although I must admit in all my years of having glasses I’ve never lost them on my head.

Troy your on, EJ stands up “Let’s do this,”

The drama of it all!

[multimetaverse]

HSMTMTS 2x09 Review

Spring Break was a bit of an odd ep but helped move some key plots forward. Let’s dig in!

Well people can no longer claim that Portwell is one sided. We finally got Gina’s pov and she starts off the ep uncertain whether the shift in their relationship means that EJ likes her but by the end of the ep she seems sure of herself and that EJ likes her back. I liked that she didn’t try to pretend that nothing had changed or that she hadn’t noticed potential signs that EJ might like her; it always sucks when tv characters act like idiots. 

Perhaps the most important reveal of this ep was that Gina has a much older estranged brother who left her and her mom many years ago. That certainly makes her backstory more tragic and is definite set up for her brother to eventually return.

The writers continue to give Portwell great tropes, capping this ep off with an airport rom-com trope that also calls back to EJ getting Gina the place ticket so she could come back in S1. Not only did Gina keep EJ’s Duke sweatshirt but she altered it to fit her better which is both sweet and bold in the assumption that it was hers to keep. Gina got her sign when not only did EJ show up to drive Gina home and take her luggage but he brought her the granola bar that she had wanted but forgot to pack. I wonder if her posting on her story that she was ubering home after her flight was cancelled was intended to see if EJ would show up since the camera focused on her posting it. Also sweet that she’s taken to calling EJ, ‘ Eej’. 

EJ’s opening was good, shows a lot of his character growth from the selfish guy he was in S1 and how he’s learned to value other people which of course leads into his feelings for Gina. We got another great use of the camera as character tonight when Gina was laughing after her facetime call with EJ until she realized that the camera was on her. 

Jack was a lot of fun. Though he didn’t really change Gina’s mind over anything like the ep description said he would.  Seemed like Gina was largely over Ricky and wondering about EJ at the beginning and the end solidified her feelings for EJ but Jack didn’t really play a role in that, it’s not like he encouraged Gina to reach out to EJ or anything. There’s a vague sense in which Jack being nomadic linked him to Ricky’s unreliability in Gina’s eyes with her craving stability but that’s a stretch. Jack mentioned that the second most dangerous part of a plane ride is when the plane takes off, a hint to the blossoming Portwell relationship where in order to take off one or both of them has to risk a confession even though they could be turned down.

This ep might seem a bit weird in hindsight. The zoom parts probably won’t age well and five years from now people might be wondering why they had Gina hang out with a manic pixie dream boy of sorts for an ep.

The path is clear for canon Portwell in the finale with EJ being Gina’s second chance at romance and her first kiss since they clearly telegraphed it out of nowhere. I’ve been impressed with the great work the writers have been doing since 2x05 to build up Portwell as a ship but also work on Gina and EJ as individual characters; they’ve been the highlight of the season so far. 

There was discourse this past week over how well or poorly Portwell has been set up. Objectively very few ships on this show get much in the way of set up or consistent writing. Redlyn and Kowie had barely any set up before getting together. Seblos had none (though in fairness that was due to Disney restrictions) and Miss Jenn and Mike Bowen didn’t have much set up either. Rini did get lots of development in S1 but that’s because they had already dated and were the main ship of the show. The show’s not really about slow burns, if Jenzzara canons in the finale they’ll count and if Rina ever got together they’d also count but neither of those ships have gotten consistent development with Mazzara not being in several eps and Gina and Ricky not even interacting for the past 3 eps. 

Is Portwell a slowburn? In a sense since they did feature quite a bit in each other’s S1 plot lines and even had a fake dating plot but it is true that they were platonic and not that close in S1 so it’s a wash. There was clear set up for romantic Portwell in 1x10 with team wonderstudies and Gina staring at EJ (which interestingly enough looked more like set up for Gina to pine over EJ). I think the main problem is that even though we saw Gina and EJ hanging out in the background we didn’t get any scenes of substance between them until 2x05. It was a mistake and there should have been some scene, like EJ and Gina commiserating in 2x03 over being single on Valentine’s Day or something like that. Hell there was even that still from 2x01 of EJ and Gina looking at each other at the piano while they were in the frame between Ricky and Nini singing and having a moment  which would have been good foreshadowing but that shot wasn’t in the ep.

Whether Tim just really wanted Portwell to be a surprise in 2x05 as a mid-season twist to throw the audience off of what looked like a Rini/Rina triangle or he was unsure as to whether he wanted to go with Portwell or if he just planned it out poorly we may never know. Regardless they’ve had great writing for 4 eps in a row now which puts them slightly ahead of the 3 eps in a row of development Rina got in S1. I’m sure if someone added up their screen time they’d find that Portwell has more screen time this season than Kowie and more screen time than Redlyn or Seblos  got in S1. 

Caswell cousins was fun and Ashlyn did in fact paint EJ’s nails. 

Set up for Seblos drama next week, it’s refreshing to see Seb being jealous over Carlos flirting with other boys that’s definitely not something you see on Disney shows.

Ricky got some healing done with his mom. Enough to cover their issues? No but this is probably the best this show is capable of. There was a brief mention of therapy sandwiched between other options which sounds more like checking off a box then setting up Ricky actually going to therapy. I noticed Lynne was smiling at odd times like when she told Ricky she knew about his breakup with Nini; whether that was poor directing or acting I don’t know. Who knows if we’ll see Lynne again. As an aside still so wild that Tim named Lynne who’s been a kinda shitty mom after his own mom who he seems to be fairly close with.

Really liked You ain’t seen nothin as a song but not a fan of the Tiktok style vid. I’ll level with you wildcats, I’m too old to really get Tiktok, it just seems like a crappy version of Vine to me. Let you go was good, seemed better fitted for Joshua Bassett’s voice than some of his previous songs. A big sign that they’re not circling back to Rini for a long time for sure. Though on that note we got a bit of a hint that Ricky was Nini’s muse which may one day come back as a way to help bring them back together. 

Looking Ahead:

If there’s only 3 weeks left till the Menkies, with only 2 weeks left for rehearsal due to spring break, it’s hard to see East High winning unless North High is disqualified or has to withdraw. 

Lily is in a promo photo so she’s likely the unexpected facetime Ricky gets which is what I had theorized. Also makes it much more likely that she’s the party crasher Ricky re-evaluates in the finale though what Tim actually wants to do with those two I do not know.

There’s little point in bringing back the Valentine’s chocolate since there’s no real stakes. Rini are already broken up, Gina hasn’t spoken to Ricky since 2x06, and it’s not like Nini and Gina were ever close so even if they stopped talking to each other it wouldn’t really affect the show in any way. 

Seems pretty likely that Second Chances refers to Gina realizing that her first try with Ricky failed but her second chance with EJ won’t and that leads to her sharing her truth and cue the Portwell confession and kiss, perhaps with an assist on EJ’s end from Mazzara. We’ve gone well past the point where Portwell can be brushed off as just a plot device to help Rina but Tim is playing with fire by getting the audience so on board with Portwell if he’s once again going to have EJ lose a girl he likes to Ricky in S3.

Gina certainly needs to talk with Ricky and I do think that happens in ep 11 or 12 and leaves them on better terms. As I mentioned last week, if Tim was smart he’d slam the door on Rina if he’s going with canon Portwell or vice versa. If he wants Rina to be a slow burn he’s really botched the writing this season, it’s been too one sided and too angsty to sustain any kind of momentum or audience interest. They haven’t even interacted for 3 eps now and not only has it not affected the show but it’s inarguably made Gina’s story line much better.  Again I don’t think he’s smart enough to not try and do Portwell and then later Rina but he’s accidentally set up the Rina story line to quite easily slam the door permanently on them by having their conversation be closure for Gina who’s moved on and an apology from Ricky who never liked her back as much as Gina liked him.

Not looking forward to seeing Nini basically live out Olivia Rodrigo’s life in future seasons

Curious to see Carlos’ apology song to Seb. Ricky helping him with it is a great way to help start redeeming Ricky’s character in the audiences eye’s. According to Matt there is a bit of a Ricky/EJ rivalry this season and if it’s really happening the sleepover would be a good place to do it though I hope it’s not about Gina. 

Until next week wildcats.

[silentroadtocabinvenus]

HSMTMTS REWATCH

SEASON TWO

EPISODE 6 - Yes and

• Seb once again proving to be absolutely adorable

• The camera guy looking towards the exit sign😂

• I understand Nini being a little upset thinking the only reason she got the part is Ricky, especially with what EJ did at the camp for her to get the lead. She didn't Audition for the role of The Rose though, so she was fine thinking she was handed the role without working for it, but only when she strictly thought it was only Miss. Jenn's idea. Which in the end it still was because Miss. Jenn declined Ricky initially.

• I love how Kourtney and Howie were both wrong about the street name

• Seb being Seb with the hoolahoop

• Ricky trying to pair with Gina but her walking away

• Carlos throwing his arms up to say okay

• Joshua trying not to laugh when Miss. Jenn throws the ball at him and he throws the ball at her. The look of shock on everyone's face while EJ is slightly confused

• Ricky starting to become paranoid and controlling in this episode. It was mentioned by Miss. Jenn and his dad were officially going on a date so that change would get him freaked out. That's not an excused, but just trying to get in his perspective of the situation.

• Idk how I felt about Gina and Ashlyn's improv scene. Ashlyn didn't really say anything wrong about how all Gina had to do was agree and add on since she was talking about improv, but at the same time Gina isn't used to staying in one place for this long so of course she's starting to get uncomfortable.

• Mike and Miss. Jenn is actually cute. He's a good guy and they clearly like each other. The relationship isn't toxic. I don't get the hate for it. I know it's not going to happen and I'm completely okay with that because he needs someone to help him move on from his ex wife.

• Ricky straight up mentioning that Gaston is dead can be taken two ways. Either he was simply trying to make a joke about it (and if EJ were to have mentioned it nobody would've reacted the same way) or it was literally him giving a sign to people that he's not okay right now. Especially considering his dad probably mentioned how the date went to him the night before.

• EJ asking if Gaston would be able to love after Belle feels like EJ wondering if he'd be able to love after Nini

• Ricky mentioning how it's cannon that the beasts can't read feels like him trying to comfort himself in a way, but also shows how literal he is thinking about it. Technically he is in character. He probably knows these are the same questions his dad asked on the date as well.

• Once he starts talking about his answer he once again makes a joke to make it more lighthearted and it works that time. He probably thought he was off free, but Miss. Jenn kept asking to go deeper with his feelings. Which made him want to close up more once he realized he already brought his real life problems up (even if it wasn't fully established) into the improv. Also no one even tries to ask if he's okay after this. When he's clearly upset over something.

• The flashback scene shows they were going to end on good terms. She knows going into the conversation that it won't happen and he encourages her to get her feelings out when she starts crying. He comforts her in this moment and let's her say her feelings. Neither of them did anything wrong in this scene.

• Ricky showing his codependency with Nini is really showing in their phone call scene. It's showing how it's starting to get unhealthy and more on the controlling side. I think it's because at this point the play last year was his comfort place from home, but with Miss. Jenn and his dad it feels like it's been taken away so now it switched to Nini.

• Ashlyn singing Home! Her voice is absolutely beautiful!!! UGH! Julia seriously suits Belle so much I would've loved to be able to see their play if it was an actual production.

• The performance grabbing Gina's attention. Ricky walking back in during the performance. Gina staying while Ricky walks away. The song is literally about home and staying. He didn't feel safe enough to do so. While Gina at least was starting feel safe with Ashlyn

• Kourtney confessing her feelings to Howie is a great scene

• I just took in the fact that the high school musical poster in Miss. Jenn's office has her name on it twice.

• Ricky finally calmed down and realised his reaction was wrong and apologised.

• His mom still hasn't even tried to talk to him. No wonder he doesn't think she misses hearing him. If you're going to leave the kid to decide when he's ready to talk at least tell him that. Don't just walk away and expect them to think you want to hear from them

• Nini wearing a ribbon

• The song is absolutely beautiful.

• She knows the song is about Ricky from the moment it was written thats why she tell Kourtney not to mention it to him.

• Also she's wearing a rose dress

• I'd like to point out her not wanting Ricky to know in this episode is the last time she shows any sort of concern towards him when it comes to the song. Part of her not wanting him to know is also probably because of his reaction yesterday. So she's not even fully concerned.

• Where Carlos is sitting I think he was only able to hear her sing loudly, but not hear the phone conversation.

[hockeyandstuff91]

How did this happen? - Part 9

Word count: 2,264

Players: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn (mentioned)

Other people: Katie (mentioned) , Ashlyn (mentioned)

Warnings: cussing

Authors note: Okay! So this was an interesting part to write.. But its finally getting us somewhere! I work for the next two days so I don’t know if I will have time to get another part out tomorrow or the next day, but I’m going to try my best. I do however have 5 days off following Saturday so I hope to write lots during that time! haha

Also Savannah is just a made up character, to my knowledge Tyler hasn’t dated anyone by that name lol

Hope you all enjoy this part!

Part 1   Part 2   Part 3    Part 4    Part 5    Part 6   Part 6.5     Part 7    Part 8   Part 10

(Brooke’s POV. First part continued from last part)

I made it back to Tyler's house and walked inside, setting the takeout bag on the kitchen counter. I heard him walking around upstairs for a minute before his footsteps lead to the stairs and I heard him come down.

"Hey," he said and walked over to the counter and opened up the bag.

"Hey," I smiled at him. "How was your day?" I asked, sitting down on one of the bar stools.

"It was fine, just kind of boring," he smiled back. "How was work?" he asked as he grabbed us some plates.

"It was fine. Oh Kyle from the restaurant says hi by the way," I said as I grabbed some food.

After a few minutes Tyler was almost done with his food but I had barely eaten anything. This whole time I had just been thinking about how I was going to tell him that I saw her and with someone else.

"Whats the matter?" Tyler asked me.

"Nothing why?"

"Brooke you only pick at your food when you are nervous about something. Whats up?" he asked as he took the last bite of his own food.

"Do you know a Ryan Adams?" I asked him.

"Yeah.. He was part of an old group of friends I use to hang out with why?"

"Are he and Savannah friends?"

"I mean she was part of that group but they never hung out why?"

"I saw her and him at the restaurant when I went to go pick up the food," I mumbled as I took a bite.

"What?"

I looked up at Tyler who was staring at me, not sure how to process the information I had just given him. "I'm sorry Ty," I said.

He shook his head "No its fine, they probably just went to go catch up since she hasn't been around in over a year," he said, getting up to clean his plate.

"Ty.." I started.

"Brooke don't."

I sighed and set my fork down, not as hungry as I was an hour ago. "Tyler look. I know you and her had a thing. I also know how that said thing ended.."

Tyler just shook his head, still not facing me. "No she isn't like that anymore Brooke or I wouldn't of given her another chance."

"Tyler-"

"Brooke I don't want to fucking hear it," Tyler's voice was raised which he had never done with me. I had a bad feeling this was going to be our first fight and I wasn't sure how to take it, but I wasn't going to sit by and let my best friend get hurt.

I got up and walked around the counter and over to where he was standing. "Tyler I don't care if you don't want to hear it or not. Kyle said that he had seen her in there more than once this week, and always with a different guy. He knows who you are and your name didn't pop up on the list," I responded, folding my arms in front of my chest.

Tyler grit his teeth, grabbing the edge of the counter before he spun to look at me. "Stay out of it," he almost growled which made me step back in response.

"No Tyler I'm not going to watch my best friend sit here and get used by some bitch. She doesn't give a fuck about you clearly. She just wants someone who looks nice and has money. I know her type."

"You've never even spoken to her before!" Tyler was now yelling. Two could play at that game.

"Tyler I don't need to speak to her! All she cares about is getting whatever she wants and moving on. She already cheated on you once in the past. She hasn't changed she just made up some story to make herself look good and to have you take her back. Don't be a fucking idiot you deserve better than that."

"I don't believe that."

"You are really going to sit here and say that you don't trust me? What do you think I'm lying to you Tyler?"

"I don't know."

I laughed at that "You have got to be kidding me. Out of anyone why would I your 'best friend' lie to you about something like this?"

"Because you hated her from the start! You have made it very clear you don't want me anywhere near her."

"So that is a good enough reason for me to try and get you to break up with her?! I'm trying to protect you!"

"I don't want to talk about this right now," He said and pushed by me, going to the living room.

I shook my head and took a deep breath. I gave him a moment before I walked into the living room and found him sitting on the couch, furiously typing on his phone. "Once you figure out that I would never lie to you about this, you let me know. Have a good night," I said and walked down the hall to the front door, slamming it behind me and got into my car, driving home with tears running down my face. I was just glad that Jamie and Katie were going to be home tomorrow.

(Tyler's POV)

It had been two hours since Brooke had left after our fight and I wanted nothing more than to call and apologize to her. In the two hours I had found out that she wasn't actually lying to me and that Savannah really was the shit person that Brooke had called since the start. I couldn't believe that I had just potentially lost my best friend and gotten cheated on for the second time. I really was the biggest idiot that everyone else kept telling me I was lately.

I knew that she probably wouldn't answer my calls tonight so I decided that I shouldn't bother her until tomorrow. I felt like the worst best friend ever right now and I was so mad at myself. I couldn't believe that I was so dumb to actually think Brooke would make this up just to get me to break up with Savannah. That's not the type of girl Brooke was and I knew that.

Brooke was different, and I knew that from the moment I met her. But it scared me to have someone different. I was used to being used for a few months and then moving on to someone else. It was easier that way, I knew that they were the shit person and I did nothing wrong, but now I was the shit person who just pushed away someone who actually cared enough about me to tell me something was going on behind my back. Someone who would never use me and genuinely cared about me as a person. She didn't care that I had money, she didn't care that I was a professional athlete, she just liked me for who I was and in this world that was hard to find.

Brooke was the first girl who ever stood up to me and put me in my place. She wasn't scared to tell me that what I was saying was bull shit. Honestly it was kind of hot since no other girl I knew did shit like that. It was something I appreciated.

Jamie was right, which I hated to admit, but he was going to love hearing later. I was going to mess up my chance with this one if I didn't act on it. And why was I being so dumb to care so much about being free to be with whoever? When was I going to find another down to earth girl like her that wouldn't turn out to be a bitch in 2 months?

There was still a part of me that was hanging on to my freedom and didn't want to let go. I was worried that there was something about this that wasn't going to work and then I would lose my best friend too. We had been super close since the start of our friendship but there were still some things that I needed to figure out before I made this official with Brooke, but at least I could tell the guys that I was going to do it soon. Maybe then Jamie would stop yelling at me so much.

(Brooke's POV)

It had been two days since Tyler and I's fight. He apologized the next day, which I was kind of surprised about but I was glad that he finally believed me and got rid of her once and for all. I had just finished getting ready for work when my phone lit up with a text message. It was from Tyler asking if I wanted to hang out after I got out of work, I replied with sure and told him that I would call him once I got out.

Things were still a little off between the two of us but I was hoping maybe we would be able to fix that tonight and talk about it. I wanted to apologize for yelling at him, though honestly he deserved it.

I made my way into work and took the elevator up to the floor that the business I worked for was on. I walked in and went over to my cubical and set my purse down on the desk. I looked over and noticed there was a piece of paper on my keyboard.

Unfolding it I scanned the paper, it was from my boss saying that he wanted to speak to me this morning. I set the note back on my desk and walked over to his office. I knocked on the door and waited for a reply before walking in.

"Mr. Callaway you wanted to speak to me?" I asked as I stepped into his office and closed the door behind me.

"Yes Brooke please take a seat," he smiled.

I walked forward and sat in one of the chairs that was in front of his desk. I knew that this couldn't of been about my work as I had finished it all ahead of everyone else. This job was pretty easy, just entering a lot of data into computer system which hadn’t taken long to learn. I had got the job less than a week after I moved into my apartment which was great because that meant I was able to save the money in my emergency savings account and not use it on rent.

"So I'm sure you saw the email last week about us downsizing the company," he said, taking his glasses off and setting them on the desk in front of him.

Mr. Callaway was a nice man, in his mid 30s, taking over for his father who had fallen ill. The company hadn't been doing as well over the last year but he hadn't seemed worried about it until these last two weeks.

I nodded my head in response.

"Unfortunately we have had a bad year, and this last month was even worse. We don't want to downsize but with the way the market is going right now we can't afford not to. Sadly this means we are going to have to let some people go..."

I already knew where he was going with this. I sunk in my seat a bit not wanting to hear him say it but I was one of the newer people so of course I would be let go first. I had only been working here for a little less than 4 months and no one else had been hired since I was.

"You have done amazing work for us Brooke and if the company starts picking back up soon we would love to keep you on the books so we can offer you your place back, but as of right now-"

"It's okay I understand. Thank you for the opportunity," I smiled and stood up.

"If you need any recommendations or anything from me just let me know, I would be happy to help you," he said, sitting back in his chair, rubbing his hand over his face.

"Thank you I appreciate that," I smiled again and turned, walking out of his office.

"I promise if anything opens up I'll give you a call," he said as I left.

I just nodded in response and walked back to my desk. I grabbed all of my things and put them into a box, carrying them out to my car.

I climbed into the driver seat and leaned against the headrest. I had held it together pretty well while inside and saying goodbye to everyone but as soon as I was in the safety of my car the tears started to stream down my face. The one thing that I feared after moving away from home had happened, I lost my job and I had no idea where to go from here. I was thankful that I had the emergency fund and that would give me a month to look which should be plenty of time, but still it worried me.

I sighed, wiping my cheek and grabbed my phone out of my purse. I unlocked it and looked at the time, Tyler should be up by now. I took a deep breath and let out a sigh, trying to calm my breathing as I hit the call button and waited for him to pick up.

"Brooke? Are you okay?" He asked, his voice sounding a little worried. There was never a reason for me to call him at this time since I would be at work right now.

"Physically yeah. I um.. I just lost my job," I said, sniffling.

Tyler didn't say anything for a few seconds. I heard him sigh before responding "I'm sorry. Do you want to come over?"

"Please?"

"Of course," he said and we both hung up as I started my car and headed over to his place.

(Brooke's POV)

The next couple weeks I spent a lot of time with Tyler. He was being super sweet in trying to get my mind off of being fired. I was just glad to get some time to relax for a little while but after a couple days I decided that I should probably start looking for another place to work. I applied to a bunch of places but being that it was the start of summer not many places were looking right now, they had already hired high school students and had no more openings.

"Ty?" I called out for Tyler as I walked through his house towards the patio doors. I was scrolling through my phone trying to find some job listings but was having no luck finding anything that I qualified for.

"Yeah?" He was playing in the back yard with the boys, throwing three different tennis balls for each of them.

"I give up," I sighed and put my phone back in my pocket, sitting down on one of the lawn chairs.

"No luck still?" He asked and walked over to me, sitting next to me in another chair.

I shook my head and put my head in my hands. I was starting to get really frustrated and really worried. On top of not being able to find a job my rent had gone up meaning I wouldn't be able to stay more than another month with what I had saved. It was like everything was coming at me all at once, I was just glad that things between Tyler and I were back to normal or I would of felt completely lost.

"Hey," he said softly and leaned over, rubbing my back. "Stop stressing," he said and grabbed one of my hands, pulling it away from my face and lifting my chin so that I was looking at him.

My eyes were watery, threatening to spill over onto my cheeks. Tyler stood up and pulled me with him and walked me back into the house and over to the couch. He sat down and brought me with him, wiping under my eyes.

"Don't cry," he said and kissed my forehead. I closed my eyes in response and leaned against him. "Listen I have watched you over the last three weeks stress about this and lose sleep. You are exhausted and that's not okay with me. I know that you wanted to do this on your own and you wanted to be able to support yourself. And more importantly I know you are scared that you are going to have to move back home," he said, rubbing my back again.

I pressed my face closer into his shoulder, not wanting to think about leaving here. I couldn't imagine having to move so far away from everyone and be alone again back at home. It was the last thing in the world that I wanted.

"Hey," he said and pulled back to look at me. "I've been thinking.. why don't you just move in with me?" he asked.

I looked up at him surprised. It was not something I was expecting out of him. I knew that he enjoyed me being around and spending time here but I also knew that he liked living on his own. I knew that he would especially not want me here if he was going to bring a random girl home from the bar some night, though come to think of it he hadn't done anything like that since he broke up with whats her face.

"I'm serious," he said, clearly reading my mind of being surprised. "It'll be great, you will have a lot more room here for your things, the boys love you and your company. During the season it will be great because I know that someone will be here to watch the house while I'm gone," he started but I shook my head.

"Ty, no I can't ask you to do that."

Tyler put his finger up to my lips. "Sh. I'm not letting you say no to this. I don't want you to be stressed about making rent or finding a job, I want you to be happy and have time to relax. I don't want you to have to move back home, we would all miss you too much. I want you here," he said and I just nodded. "Okay?" he smiled and dropped his hand from in front of my face.

I nodded again "okay," I said softly and smiled at him. "I seriously appreciate this Tyler, you have no idea," I said and wrapped my arms around him, giving him a big hug.

"I know. But hey it's not just for you, its for me too."

"Oh?" I laughed and looked at him. "I get to cook and clean for you and you don't have to pay people to do it anymore right?" I smirked.

He laughed "I mean if you are offering.." he teased and I rolled my eyes. "No Brooke I appreciate your company, those other things are just a plus," he smiled and I nodded, not fully believing him but I would give him the benefit of the doubt.

[multimetaverse]

HSMTMTS 2x01 Review

New Year’s Eve was a great way to return to HSMTMTS especially after such a long gap. Let’s dig in!

Vladimir Lenin once said that, ‘’ there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen". It’s been almost a year and half since S1 ended but this past week has seen revelation after revelation as the fandom has resurrected itself and promotion for S2 kicked into high gear: Joshua Bassett came out, Frankie and Joe confirmed that they are a real life couple, Larry seemingly confirmed that S2 will only have 11 eps rather than the 12 initially ordered, and perhaps most importantly Olivia revealed that she and the main cast are under contract for 4 seasons and made clear that she’s leaving the show as soon as her contract is up.

I really enjoyed this premiere, it felt like picking up right back where we left off. I’m guessing that S2 was originally supposed to premiere around Christmas or New Year’s but the holiday decorations and real Utah snow add a charming aesthetic to the ep. Tim Federle deserves credit for giving HSMTMTS more of an ensemble feel which is no easy feat with a cast as large as this show has. It likely won’t last due to covid restrictions  but at least for tonight we got to see all the characters hanging out together acting like a real group of friends.

The dialogue tonight really reminded me of Glee and I think I mean that as a compliment. Miss Jenn in particular seems to be doing her best April Rhodes impression minus the alcoholism. 

The rini scenes tonight were lovely. Perfect gift was a great song and I loved the rini duet during the music in me as the world faded around them leaving just the two of them. The Harry Styles reference is funny in light of Josh’s coming out interview. Of course, it’s hard now to separate Nini and Ricky and Olivia and Josh. Their chemistry shines through as 2x01, 2x02, and possibly parts of 2x03 were filmed pre Jolivia breakup which seems to have happened around summer 2020. Whether they can keep that same chemistry later on in S2, not to mention future seasons, remains to be seen.

A major theme tonight was communication and clearly Rini need to work on theirs. Poor Ricky had to learn that Nini’s moving to Denver the night before she leaves town which has to remind of him of his mom effectively abandoning him. Ricky saying that he’s never gonna breakup with Nini ever again sure sounds like foreshadowing for a disaster though the odds that this time Nini initiates the breakup are pretty good. 

I’m glad that the show is continuing to delve in the Bowen’s divorce story with their house being sold and Ricky and his dad having to move into an apartment. Divorce is expensive and the division of assets typically leave people less well off. Mike Bowen needs to work on his communication skills but he’s rocking that beard; it takes him from depressed divorced dad to depressed divorced daddy.

Seblos was cute and in a nice change of pace Disney doesn’t seem to be cynically teasing them then cutting their scenes. It was refreshing to see them just being a couple and to hear Carlos casually refer to himself as gay. In that regard tonight’s ep didn’t seem like it was a Disney show at all and it’s major progress that there are now two main gay characters on HSMTMTS. We learn that Carlos is rich which seems likely to be a source of conflict with Seb who comes from a large farming family.

Bet on It was really fun and I liked that Ricky apparently couldn’t stop singing it. The medley of HSM 2 songs was fun but I’ll be real with you wildcats, I never thought HSM 2 or 3 were nearly as good as the first movie so I’m not sad that they’re doing something else this year.

Wild that Big Red’s mom also calls him Big Red. Salt Lake Slices seems poised to be a big part of S2 both as hangout spot and work location for some of the characters. Redlyn are sweet together but sometimes Big Red comes off as a closeted gay guy which isn’t ideal for a het pairing that is supposedly a big part of S2.

Nice to see Gina so excited to have sleepovers with Ashlyn. We know from 2x03 that Gina contends with being single on Valentine’s day and from her glances at Ricky tonight she’s clearly not over him. Tim’s playing with fire and I can only hope he knows what he’s doing. I liked the little detail of Kourtney having AOC on her vision board, it feels true to the character (hopefully AOC gets elected president one day if the USA doesn’t collapse into a fascist dictatorship or civil war before then). EJ’s beard has got to go but I like that he seems committed to being a better version of himself; very doubtful his plan to go straight to Duke like his forefathers doesn’t change by the end of the season. 

Derek Hough did a good job of playing Zach as a subtly condescending man who managed to swiftly undermine Miss Jenn’s confidence, we’ll see what he and North High bring to the table.

Looking Ahead:

Next week are auditions for Beauty and the Beast, we know Ashlyn gets the role of Belle and EJ has conveniently removed himself from the running for Beast which presumably clears the path for Ricky to take the lead. There’s been some controversy over the casting choices and I’ll save my comments about it for the 2x02 review.

We get to see Lily who looks like a meaner version of season 1 Gina, we’ll see how much depth she actually ends up getting. Howie is introduced in 2x03 and Antoine likely shows up later on. Jack likely shows up towards the end of the season.

Howie seems to have a connection with Kourtney though the character synopsis does say he gets close to a wildcat or two which certainly leaves room to slide him into Gina’s plot. We know Antoine is into Ashlyn so that’s another love triangle to look forward to. Jack was described as having wanderlust and most of the cast seems not to have filmed with him so I think it’s likely that he plays a role in convincing EJ to take a gap year rather than head straight to Duke. 

A translation leak on TikTok reveals that in 2x03 Gina is sad that she’s only gotten a Valentine’s Day gift from her mom. A brief clip from the promo shows up her on her porch at night holding a heart shaped box of chocolates. If that’s supposed to be from a secret or semi-secret admirer than it has to be from either EJ, Ricky, or Howie. If it’s a platonic gift then it could be from anyone, we’ll see what Tim has up his sleeves.

Nini moving back to SLC is a question of when not if. It’s going to be very difficult to bring her back in a way that’s justified and also doesn’t leave the time she spends in Denver looking like a total waste. Frankly, I’d rather the show just bite the bullet and bring her back with as little fuss as possible.

We’re possibly around a quarter way through HSMTMTS given that the mains have 4 season contracts and presuming that the show is not cancelled earlier. At the very least the show will be radically different after S4 if they try to continue it as Olivia has made very clear that she’s going to leave asap to pursue her burgeoning music career full time (notably she’s only done the bare minimum of promo for S2). 

Looming over the remaining seasons of HSMTMTS is what the professional relationship between Olivia and Josh looks like especially since in many ways the show is built around Ricky and Nini. Off screen relationships have often caused on screen problems and dating a co-worker is rarely a good idea since even clean breakups leave lingering resentments. Obviously the Jolivia breakup was not clean, Driver’s License, Deja Vu, and Good 4 U (which is a certified bop) were clearly written from a place of hurt and in some ways were written to hurt. It’s no surprise that Joshua has dropped his duet with Sabrina Carpenter from his EP; someone on his team at least is trying to stop the damage to his reputation. There’s a decent chance that Olivia’s songs becoming such hits has irreparably damaged Joshua Bassett’s reputation among the same pool of largely young women that he’s targeting his music towards thereby cutting off his music career at the knees. If nothing else this behind the scenes drama should keep things entertaining for a while.

Until next week Wildcats