Didn't Know It Before( An EJ Caswell/HSMTMTS Fanfiction)

Chapter Twenty-Three: Neither Did I

"Yeah, see you guys!" We called, waving to everybody as we walked across the parking lot to EJ's car, hand in hand.

"That was unbelievable!" I exclaimed. "Can you believe we just did that?!"

"Its crazy." EJ chuckled.

"I mean, we wrote and choreographed a song in one night, made sings, performed it flawlessly, and we actually managed to make a difference with what we love to do! That's insane!" I said, jumping up and down.

"It is insane, but can you talk about it without pulling my arm out of the socket?" He asked, letting go of my hand. I felt my face heat up.

"Sorry. I'm just excited."

"I didn't say you couldn't be excited." He said, pushing my hair off of my shoulder. "You should be! We couldn't have done that without you." I shot him a skeptical look. "What?"

"You could've done it without me." I said. "Ashlyn or Nini could've easily written that song."

"Maybe...but we didn't want anybody but you writing our lyrics for us." He said.

"Why is that, exactly?" I asked. It was his turn to give me a skeptical look. "What?"

"You really have to ask that question?" He asked. I shrugged. "Megan, your lyrics are amazing. They're beautiful and real. You have a real gift on your hands." I smiled, looking down at your feet. "You can't tell me you weren't aware of that."

"Before the auditions...I'd never shared my songs with anyone." I said. "I can think a song sounds good, but other people might not-"

"Forget about other people." He said. I stopped walking, looking up at him. "Tell me something."

"What?"

"When you were writing your audition song," He said, "When you were thinking of the words, were you writing those for us? Or for Miss Jenn?" I thought about this.

"No."

"Who were those lyrics for?" He questioned.

"Me." I said. "They were my feelings, what I was doing and how I felt about it."

"Exactly. The songs that you right for yourself? Those are the best ones." He stated. "The songs that show people who you are? Who wouldn't love that?" I looked down, blushing. "What?"

"Nothing, I'm just...I'm not used to compliments." He raised his eyebrows skeptically. "Keep in mind, I'd never had friends before now much less...whatever we are. This is all new territory for me."

"Well yeah, its new territory for everyone at some point." He pointed out, as we came to a stop beside his car. "You're just gonna have to do what everybody else does."

"Which is what, exactly?" I asked. He smiled, reaching up and tucking my hair behind my ear.

"Get used to it." He said, leaning down and pressing a kiss to my cheek. "Now we have to get going, because we don't want to leave your parents waiting, and I have some serious schmoozing to do." I chuckled, rolling my eyes at him. He walked around the the passenger side, opening the door for me to get inside.

~~~

"Wow, this pace is...fancy." EJ pointed out, as we pulled up to 'Bambara' one of the fanciest and expensive restaurants in Salt Lake City.

"Oh boy." I said, sinking down in the passenger's seat.

"Its ok, its not a big deal. So you're parents took us to a fancy restaurant, I think its cool of them." He said. I sighed and we climbed out of the car, walking inside. The hostess was standing at her podium.

"Let me guess, Kline party of four?" She asked. I nodded. "Right this way." We followed her back through the extremely fancy restaurant and she led us back to the table where my parents were waiting. We sat down across from them and my Mom looked at me awkwardly.

"Too much?" She asked.

"Its fine, Mom." I told her. But I could tell by the look on her face that she didn't believe me. "Honestly, its ok."

"Next time we'll take it down a notch." She said. I nodded.

"So, EJ," Dad said, "Megan tells us that you're in drama and Captain of the Water Polo team?"

"Yes sir, that's right." EJ said, taking a sip of the water that had already been waiting for us when we got here.

"That's not a combination we see too much these days, sports and the arts." Mom pointed out.

"Well I mean, that's kind of what made High School Musical so iconic." He said. "It introduced the idea that you don't have to be tied down to one label. You can be a jock and a theater kid. That's why I was so excited that we were doing this show. I identify with it."

"So are you playing Troy then?" Dad asked. I cringed slightly.

"Um...no, sir. I'm Troy's understudy, but my main role is Chad."

"Is that the best friend?" Mom asked.

"Um...Yes, ma'am."

"He's such an underrated character." I pointed out. "I mean, I don't know if anybody really thinks about what's really going on underneath. I mean, with the whole 'I don't dance' arc in HSM2, Chad's really wrestling with that idea that if you're athletic you can't also be artistic, but he really figures that out and by the third movie he's actively participating in musicals. Its pretty deep if you think about it." I took a sip of my water, and as I put my glass down, I saw everyone staring at me. "What?"

"I um...I don't think anyone really thought about a DCOM that profoundly but um...you have a point I suppose." EJ said. 

"Sorry, a what now?" Mom asked.

"Disney Channel Original Movie." I translated.

"Aha..." Dad said. I sighed.

"I'm just saying, Chad's nothing to be embarrassed about." I said, looking at EJ. "We have this problem in the theater, where we think that you have to be the lead to be a good actor, and its just not true. If done well, there are a ton of secondary characters that can steal the show. Like say, Lafoo in Beauty and the Beast, or King George in Hamilton. They're secondary, smaller parts, but by far some of the most memorable aspects of the show. Don't underestimate other parts just because they're not the lead."

"Yeah, that's actually a really good point." EJ said. "I never thought about it that way."

"They didn't tell you that at Theater camp?" I asked. He shook his head.

"Everyone was competing for the lead roles, I don't think anyone's first choice was a secondary character." I shrugged.

"Well, maybe as actors we should start looking at the substance of the character rather than the number of lines." I said.

"Wow...I didn't know you were this into theater." Dad stated. I nodded.

"If I'm being honest...neither did I." I told him.

~~~

Kind of a pointless, filler chapter, I'm sorry about that. I've been having writer's block and just couldn't figure out what to write, but hopefully I'm getting back on track. Thank you all for being so patient!

-NetflixFanfix