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Jonathan may have been dealing with everything that happened in the RV and with his mom, but he couldn’t just not comment when his brother got up in front of people and played piano for the first time in years to help a girl audition for something, even if Jon still wasn’t entirely sure what the audition was for. Especially when he realized what the moment reminded him of.
“Nice job, Cushing. I knew you had it in you,” Jonathan called to Sarah after she and Jordan left the stage. Jonathan moved to wrap his arm around Jordan, and said, “And good job, bro. It was good to see you play again.”
“Thanks, Jon,” Jordan said while ducking his head with a proud smile.
“Yeah, thank you, Jonathan. I honestly can’t believe I even just did that. I haven’t performed a solo in years,” Sarah smiled.
“Well you were completely amazing, and if you don’t get in, they’re crazy. But you guys do know you totally pulled a High School Musical, right?” Jonathan joked.
He let Jordan go as they started to walk down the hall. Jordan and Sarah had been some of the last to go up for the audition, and they weren’t going to announce anything about the results today, so the trio felt comfortable leaving after their performance.
“Come on, man. What are you even talking about?” Jordan asked.
“You totally just lived out the High School Musical audition scene. Gabriella wanted to do the audition, but she was afraid, waited until the last second, volunteered, and Troy swooped in to the rescue to sing with her. The only difference is that Sarah was already on the list, but it was too late for them and they didn’t get a formal audition, but they still got the callback, and then they had a bunch of drama and at the end they did ‘Breaking Free,’ and Troy helped Gabriella be confident enough to do it. That’s pretty much exactly what just happened!”
“No way, man. That is not what just happened, you’re just seeing things because it’s your secret favorite movie. And we’re not a couple either,” Jordan denied.
“I didn’t say you had to be a couple, but I’m serious, it’s exactly what just happened!” Jon defended himself.
“There’s no way!”
“Okay, I’m loving this discussion boys, especially learning that you’re secretly a High School Musical fan, Jonathan. I never would have expected it, but after you just spit out the whole plot of the first movie, I can totally see it. But I agree with Jordan, we did not just live out the movie,” Sarah interjected.
“You definitely did! Star of the sports team, who secretly has some musical talent, goes to an audition, plans to watch the shy girl, but has to jump in at the last second to help her when she needs a partner, and the audition is amazing! You are Troy and Gabriella, and you cannot deny it. It just fits! And Jordan is the new guy at school, so that part kind of fits too.”
“Okay, I still don’t agree with you, but even if I admitted that there were some similarities to the scene, what would that make you, Sharpay ?” Jordan asked, somewhat sarcastically.
“Ha ha, Jordan. I’m obviously Chad in the end after he worked with Taylor and the rest of their teams to get Troy and Gabriella back together for the callbacks, and was super proud of his brother. Because I am, you know, super proud of you,” Jonathan smiled at his brother. “And mom and dad totally will be too after they find out,” Jonathan added, losing his smile a little as he remembered what had happened with his mom earlier.
“Thanks, Jon,” Jordan said, but he also noticed that his brother had gotten a little less happy at the mention of their parents. He knew something had happened after he went to the school to drop off their uniforms, but Jon hadn’t had a chance to tell him what happened yet. So he decided to change the subject while they were still with Sarah. “So, do you want to go to Victoria May’s for milkshakes or something to celebrate a successful audition, Sarah?”
“Yeah, that sounds great. I’m not really in the mood to go home right now, so milkshakes sound like fun,” Sarah replied, and after a pause, she smiled and said, “Thanks guys, you’re the best.”
“No problem, Cushing, 'We’re All In This Together,' after all.”
The three friends laughed as they finally reached the exit of the school and headed outside.
“I still cannot believe you’re a High School Musical fan, Jonathan.”
“Oh yeah, he saw it once with Eliza, years ago, and then came home and made the rest of us watch them all. I’m pretty sure he has the songs memorized. Maybe he should have been the one up there auditioning today,” Jordan shared with Sarah.
“And if I had wanted to, it would have been wonderful because I’m ‘Fabulous’,” Jonathan said, striking a pose.
“Now you’re Sharpay, Jonathan. You might want to ‘Get’cha Head in the Game,’ because you know Troy and Gabriella won every time they went up against her,” Sarah added.
“Oh come on, Sarah, I’m sure we can ‘Work This Out,’ right Jon?”
“Sure, Jor. In fact, I think our friendship is just ‘What I’ve Been Looking For,’ and this might just be ‘The Start of Something New’ for us here in Smallville.”
“I’m sure we can ‘Bop to the Top,’ even without football. Maybe we can be the ones ‘Breaking Free,’ now that we’re off the team,” Jordan said hopefully.
“Yeah, what’s up with that, anyway? Sorry to break up the High School Musical references, but how did you even break your arm, Jonathan? You said Tag jumped Jordan, which explains his injuries, but what happened to you?”
“Well, Cushing, it all started when Jordan, here, decided that he wanted to play football, and then we…”