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When it was announced that East High had won the Menkies award, Miss Jenn had emphatically promised them a “trip of a lifetime” for the upcoming summer break. None of them took this promise with much salt - they knew how their drama teacher could get carried away with her own ideas - but none of them could deny that she had most definitely pulled through.
They were going to New York.
Just for a week, and they had to book and overnight flight, but still. New York.
Needless to say, they were all extremely excited. Carlos had helped Miss Jenn organise the itinerary so they could fit as much as possible into their limited time and Kourtney was texting everyone constantly with updated packing list so they had an outfit for every occasion.
EJ, even though he had accompanied his parents on their many business trips to New York, was no exception to the collective excitement. His eagerness for the trip had less to do with the location and more to do with the people he was going with. Well, person.
He’d already gotten his flight ticket switched to ensure he was seated next to Gina (thankfully, Seb was also looking to switch to sit next to Carlos, so he avoided too much suspicion), and she looked pleasantly surprised when she realised they were going to be next to each other.
The flight was just over 4 hours, giving EJ an idea on how to pass the time. Something that they’d talked about for ages but never actually found the time to do.
“A High School Musical movie marathon? Seriously?”
“Oh, come on,” EJ said, clipping into his seatbelt after giving Gina the window seat. “At the after party last year you said you wanted to watch them all in one day.”
Gina paused. “You remember that?”
EJ smiled. “Of course.”
Gina stared at him for silence for a minute, and just as EJ was about to say forget it, she said, “Okay, wonderstudy, let’s do it.”
“You got it, wonderstudy.”
-
Looking back, they should have know they wouldn’t have gotten any peace watching the movie that all their friends were collectively obsessed with while sitting on a place surrounded by said friends.
Even so, it was a good time watching all the films, giving their own commentary. EJ quipped that the cafeteria scene would’ve been so much better with Gina’s choreography, and Gina pointed out how fun it would’ve been to see EJ do the I Don’t Dance routine as Chad.
“You know they’re in love, right?” Ashlyn asked, popping her head up from the seats behind them.
“What?” EJ made a strangled sound, whipping around to look at his cousin. Surely, she wasn’t talking about—
“Chad and Ryan,” Ash said, pointing to the screen when Chad and Ryan were sitting at a table, inexplicably wearing each other’s clothes. “They’re totally in love.”
“Oh, totally,” Gina replied. “There’s no other explanation.”
EJ chuckled, still reeling a little from what he thought Ashlyn was implying. He glanced at Gina to see if his reaction was too obvious, but thankfully she was engrossed in the movie.
-
They didn’t get to finish all the movies. Troy and Gabriella were discussing Gabriella leaving for Stanford when the PA system instructed them to turn off all devices and buckle their seatbelt. EJ do so, tucking his laptop into his carryon and settling back into his seat.
“Guess this is no big deal for you,” EJ said, gripping his armrest a little tighter and the plane began to descend.
“What do you mean?” Gina asked.
“You know, flying. The taking off and landing and all that. Bet you’re used to it.”
“I mean… yeah,” Gina said, frowning a little, eyeing the change in EJ’s demeanour. “Aren’t you? I thought you flew with your parents all the time.”
“Yeah, I do,” EJ said, trying to breathe evenly. “I just never really got used to it.”
Gina broke out into a slow smile. “EJ Caswell, don’t tell me you’re afraid!”
“Oh, he’s such a baby when it comes to landing,” Ashlyn chimed in from behind them.
Gina laughed, looking up at EJ. “You know, the only thing more dangerous than taking off is landing.”
EJ gritted his teeth and shut his eyes. “Why would you say that to me right now?”
“I’m sorry,” Gina said, finally taking pity on the older boy. “Look, I’ll help you.”
“How?” EJ asked, peeking open one eye to look down at her.
Gina pried EJ’s hand open from the death grip he had on the armrest and linked their fingers together. “Like this,” she said. “Now keep you eyes closed, unclench your teeth, and just breathe with me.”
EJ looked at her, eyes darting down to where their hands were intertwined, before obeying her instructions. He sat back and tried to relax, focusing on Gina’s breathing instead of his own.
And then they landed.
EJ had been so focused on Gina’s breathing and the way her hand felt in his and hoping to God his hand wasn’t too sweaty, that he didn’t even realise the time passing. Everyone was getting out of their seats and reaching for their bags when EJ finally opened his eyes.
“Sorry,” he said, realising he was holding onto Gina a little too tight and releasing his grip immediately. “Didn’t mean to crush your hand.”
Gina laughed, unbuckling herself from her seat. “It’s okay. I don’t mind.”
“Thank you,” EJ said sincerely, “That really helped.”
“Good,” Gina smiled sweetly, “I’m glad.”
-
Once at the hotel and split into their different rooms, they all pretty much fell asleep straight away. No one got much sleep on the plane and the overnight flight had really taken it out of them. Miss Jenn instructed them to get as much sleep as possible but they had to be up and ready by 1pm to catch a matinee.
EJ helped Gina carry her luggage up to the room. They were separated into different groups, with EJ rooming with Ricky, Big Red and Carlos and Gina in a room with Ashlyn, Kourtney, Nini and Seb. Luckily, the rooms were across the hall from each other, with Miss Jenn and Mr Mazzara having respective suites at the top of the corridor.
“Goodnight,” EJ said softly, dropping Gina’s luggage outside the room. “Or I guess, good morning, since it’s 4am.”
“Goodnight, EJ,” Gina replied, giving him one last look before disappearing behind the door.
“Goodnight, Gina,” EJ repeated to no one, standing stupidly dazed in the hall, gazing at the shut door. Shaking himself out of the trace, he turned to his own room and dragged his luggage behind him.
-
Miss Jenn was not kidding about being up and ready by the afternoon. EJ felt as though he had barely closed his eyes when there was a sharp knocking and his teachers voice was shouting through the door.
“Time to wake up, boys! We can’t be late!”
There was a collective groan from each of the sleeping boys.
“I heard that! Up! Now!”
EJ groggily raised himself out of bed. Surprisingly, Ricky was already up and getting ready in from of the floor length mirror.
“Dude, why are you up so early?” he asked.
“Had to be, man,” Ricky replied, fixing his jacket and checking his hair. “This whole trip is, like, Nini’s dream. I’m going to make sure it’s perfect. And a date to Broadway is a pretty good start.”
“Date? Didn’t you guys break up?”
“Well… yeah. But, still, a date is a date. We’re going to dinner and a show. What’s more date-like than that?”
“It’s true,” Big Red chimed in, coming out of the bathroom. “It’s all Ashlyn has been talking about.”
EJ stared. He hadn’t really thought of this trip as a romantic getaway but, looking around the room, he could see he was the only one. The guys all had their people here with them, why would they not be looking forward to the romantic situations.
Getting ready, all he could now think about was how he looked and if his hair was okay and if his shirt fit right. He wanted to look good, now that the other guys had implied that this outing had some sort of importance.
EJ wanted Gina to think he looked nice.
EJ knew that his feelings for Gina had been building for a while. He wanted to tell her, but there never really seemed to be a right time, and he wasn’t a hundred percent sure that she liked him back or if she just saw him as a friend. Today, though, could really turn into something if he played it smooth. This could be their first date.
Carlos was ready first and went out to meet up with Seb, with Ricky and Big Red not far behind. EJ took a steading breath and followed his friends out into the hall.
He saw Big Red and Ashlyn kiss and link hands and Ricky holding an arm out to Nini, who took it after a moment’s hesitation with a surprised but happy smile. The two pairs continued down the hall to where everyone was waiting by the elevator.
EJ heard a door shut quietly to his left and looked over to see Gina stepping out of her room. She had tied her hair up and was wearing a simple black dress.
“You look beautiful,” EJ breathed out the second he saw her. Realising what he said, his eyes snapped bashfully to the side before coming back to meet Gina’s. Is that okay?
Gina answered his silent question with a smile. “Thanks,” she spoke softly. “You look very handsome.”
EJ beamed. He looked over to where all their friends were waiting for them. “Well, we don’t want to be late,” he said, holding his hand out.
Gina looked down at his hand for a beat too long, before reaching out and taking it. “No, we don’t.”
-
Miss Jenn had gotten them all tickets to Dear Evan Hansen, mostly so that she could finally say that she’d seen it. It was great, obviously, and the students could not stop chattering about it all the way to dinner.
“Hi, we have a table for eleven booked for 7pm under the name Jennifer,” Miss Jenn said when they reached the restaurant.
“Great!” the hostess replied. “When will the rest of you party be joining you?”
“Rest of the party?” Miss Jenn frowned and turned back to her students, doing a quick head count. “Okay, guys, has anyone seen Gina and EJ?”
-
“Where are we going?”
“If I tell you, I’d have to kill you.”
“Miss Jenn is going to freak out!”
“Don’t worry, I’m texting Ash right now. I’ll just tell her you’re not feeling well and I’m taking you back to the hotel.”
“Ah, so you are going to kill me.”
“Ha-ha. Look, we’re almost here… Ta-da!”
“EJ— what? This is beautiful.”
EJ had lead the pair into Central Park, to a picnic set up right next to the lake. A wicket basket sat in the middle of fake, flickering tea lights on a red and white blanket, spread across the grass. The view of the water was gorgeous and the lights from the surrounding building gave the whole scene an ethereal glow.
“When did you even have the time to set this up?” Gina asked, letting EJ pull her down onto the blanket.
EJ shrugged. “I know a guy.”
Gina rolled her eyes. “More like your dad knows a guy.”
“Hey, don’t bash my connections,” EJ joked, laughing along with Gina. They quietened down, sitting next to each other as the implications of what EJ had done set in. “Do you like it?”
“Yes, EJ, I love it. I’m just confused—why did you do all this?”
EJ ducked his head. “You know why.”
“I need to hear you say it.”
“I like you, Gina,” EJ confessed. “More than like you, honestly. You’re my favourite person… And if I’ve read all the signs wrong, I’m really sorry, but I feel like you might like me too.”
Gina smiled. “You didn’t read the signs wrong, EJ. I like you, too.”
Looking at each other, they let the words sink in. EJ took the opportunity to move close to Gina.
“Gina?” he asked, leaning in. “Can I…?”Gina glanced down at his lips, and EJ moved slowly, waiting for an okay from the girl.
“EJ…” she breathed. “I can’t.”
EJ pulled back immediately, confused. Gina, who was definitely in a good mood when they sat down, now looked so sad. “What’s wrong? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—“
“It’s not you,” Gina said quickly, standing up suddenly. “I’m sorry, EJ, I just can’t do this.”
EJ watched helplessly as Gina ran away from him, taking his heart with her.
-
EJ didn’t get to see Gina when he finally got back to the hotel. She had shut herself in her room and wouldn’t come out for anything, and Miss Jenn had him cornered, giving him and lecture about rules and responsibility and how dangerous it was to disappear without telling anyone where he was going.
EJ took his earful, nodding in the right places and promising his teacher he would do better, before finally heading to bed.
Lying in the dark, his head was spinning. Gina said he didn’t read the signs wrong. Gina said she liked him back. So what was the problem?
EJ didn’t know. But he was going to find out.
-
The next morning, he woke up to his roommates shuffling around the room.
“Hey, EJ, time to get up. We’re getting on the ferry today,” Carlos said as he passed his bed. EJ just groaned and pulled the covers up over his head.
He heard their door open and peeked to see Seb entering the room.
“Hey,” Carlos said, approaching his boyfriend and giving him a kiss on the cheek. “You excited for today.”
“I think so,” Seb said nervously. “I’ve never been on a boat.”
“It’s nothing to worry about,” his boyfriend replied. “You’ll be perfectly safe.”
“I hope so. Gina has called it off. She says she gets severely sea sick, so she’s just gonna stay in her room.” “Uh, what a shame. Stuck in her room in New York.”
EJ perked up. “Gina’s not going?”
The pair turned around to face him.
“No,” Seb said. “She’s gonna stay here. You really should be getting ready, though, everyone’s going to be leaving in a few.”
“Uh, actually, I’m not feeling too great.” EJ gave a very unconvincing cough. “Can you let Miss Jenn know that I’m gonna stay here too.”
Carlos gave EJ a look that definitely meant he wasn’t fooled, but thankfully he didn’t call him out. “Okay, EJ, if you say so.”
EJ smiled gratefully and ducked back under the covers.
-
He knocks on the door twice and waits. Gina opens the door with a blanket draped over her shoulders and a confused frown.
“EJ? What are you doing here?”
“I stayed behind. I’m sick.” He gives another fake cough, more to make her laugh than convince her. “Can I come in?”
Gina hesitates, but then nods and holds the door open wider for him to step through.
“Look,” EJ starts once they’ve both settled crossed legged on Gina’s bed. “About last night, I’m really sorry. It wasn’t fair for me to put you on the spot like that. I understand if you don’t want to be with me, but that doesn’t mean I want to stop being your friend.”
“EJ…” Gina whispered, a soft smile playing on her lips. “It’s not that.”
“Then what is it? Please help me understand.”
“I’ve moved around since I was little. I’ve never stayed in one place for a full summer… and I wanted this summer to mean something. I wanted it to be special.”
“I know,” EJ said empathetically. “Gina, I know. I want you to have to perfect summer.”
“I thought it would be… The perfect summer, the perfect guy…”
EJ frowned, reaching out and putting a hand over Gina’s. “And—what? I’m not the perfect guy?”
“No, EJ, you’re perfect. More than. It’s just… I need to be with someone who will stick around. I can’t have this whirlwind summer romance when I know you’re going to be leaving after.”
“What?” EJ let out a confused laugh. “I’m leaving? Since when?”
Gina frowned. “For college? In the fall?”
EJ’s eye widened with understanding. “Oh, Gina…”
“So, you understand? This can’t happen when I know I’ll just end up with a broken heart.”
“Gina… I was going to tell you last night. I’m not leaving.”
“What?”
“I’m not leaving. I mean, yes I’m leaving East High and we won’t be going to the same school anymore, but I’m staying in Salt Lake.”
“…You are? But what about Duke?”
“I’m not going to Duke. I didn’t earn my place there. But the University of Utah seem happy to have me.”
“University of… So that means…” Gina stared at him, eyes wide.
EJ grinned when he saw it was finally sinking in for Gina. “It means, I’m not going anywhere, Gina. I’m sticking around.”
Gina squealed, jumping up and wrapping her arms around EJ’s neck. EJ caught her effortlessly, beaming and holding her tight.
When they finally separated, EJ took one of Gina’s hand in his. “Next time you’re worrying about something, G, please just come and talk to me.”
Gina smiled bashfully and nodded. “I will.”
They sat on the bed, holding hands and grinning, until EJ jumped up and pulled Gina up with him.
“Now, I think it’s time for us to go out and enjoy the city. After all, we have that whirlwind summer romance to be getting on with,” he teased.
Gina shoved him, but she was still smiling. “Shut up.”
“I’m kidding,” EJ said seriously, holding her gaze. “It’s not just going to be for the summer.”