02x08 - Most Likely To

[bunniefuu]

Previously on High School Musical:
The Musical: The Series...

I was finally starting to
see myself as a ladies' man.

Or like,
a man who's with a lady.

But when we visited North High
to see if they stole our Beast mask,

Napoleon over here tried
to win over my girlfriend.

That man looks ridiculous and
you should dump him and date me.

These people made
us do a dance-off

just so Ashlyn could
literally fall in love.

But we have bigger problems.

Just feels like a lot's
about to change around here.

Redhead's intuition.

Hi. Thank you all for coming
to rehearsal in the morning.

I know it's a crazy day with
the career fair and all,

but given all your
behavior last week,

I believe we are lucky
to be rehearsing at all.

For future reference,

singing and dancing, good.

Breaking and entering, bad.

Miss Jenn,
we didn't break anything.

- Would you like me to be the first?
- I'm good.

Okay. I'm just going to say it.

Zack Roy stole our Beast mask.

Why are you not freaking out?

Because winners don't freak out,
Carlos.

They rise.

When they go low, we sing high.

Have you seen Nini?

- Every time I open Instagram.
- Yeah, thanks.

I mean, here in school.

No. Nini and I didn't leave
things on a great note last week.

And, uh, no, over the weekend
we didn't exactly talk.

But, look, I'm...

Well, I'm not sure what's gonna
happen when I see her today.

Okay. Let's rehearse.

EJ, remember where
you are emotionally.

Belle has just rebuked
your marriage proposal

and LeFou is rallying the
guys to boost you back up.

Let's hit it.

Don't forget to start on your left
foot at the top of the chorus.

Thank you. Anything else?

Don't fall over.

You dance people have
all the best tips.

Go get 'em, Biggie.

Thanks! All good!

I wasn't saying you weren't.

Just know that I am loyally
rooting for you, okay?

He's a little upset
about the French kid.

We're, uh, working through it.

Big Red, whenever you're ready.

Gosh, it disturbs me to see you,
Gaston

Looking so down in the dumps

Every guy here'd love to be you,
Gaston

Even when taking your lumps

There's no man in
town as admired as you

You're everyone's favorite guy

Everyone's awed
and inspired by you

And it's not very
hard to see why

No one's slick as Gaston

No one's quick as Gaston

No one's neck is as
incredibly thick as Gaston

For there's no man
in town half as manly

Perfect, a pure paragon

You can ask any Tom,
d*ck, or Stanley

And they'll tell you whose
team they'd prefer to be on

No one's been like Gaston

A kingpin like Gaston

No one's got a swell cleft
in his chin like Gaston

As a specimen, yes,
I'm intimidating

My what a guy that Gaston

When I was a lad,
I'd eat four dozen eggs

Every morning to
help me get large

And now that I'm grown
I eat five dozen eggs

So I'm roughly the
size of a barge

No one sh**t like Gaston

Make those beauts like Gaston

Then goes tromping around
wearing boots like Gaston

I use antlers in
all of my decorating

Say it again

Gaston

Dancers, glorious.

Big Red, hilarious.

And, EJ, victorious.

Nice emotional connection
to the material.

I've got no notes.

And as much as I hate to
break that connection,

I'm afraid I'm the
bearer of some hard news.

We just got a call from
the disciplinary board

of an organization I'm
not sure really exists.

"Effective immediately,

this production will shut
down rehearsal for one week

as punishment for trespassing
by order of the...

Monkeys."

Wait. It's pronounced Menkies.

For the record, your competition
has been punished as well.

North High is
benched for the week.

Okay. Feels generous.

Miss Jen, what are we gonna do?

We can't lose a whole week

when we haven't even started
blocking the second act yet.

We are...we are going
to keep our heads down

and our chins up.

I don't... I don't think
that's physically possible.

It's an expression, Sebastian.

I mean, how're you
gonna forget to tell me

that your moonlight as an
amazing singer at North High.

Was it deep undercover?

It's crazy.

I thought you and Howie
were couple goals.

We were. For a hot second.

Until he came out of the castle
and showed his true colors.

I should have known
there was a reason

we never hung out
with his friends.

Shady.

Speaking of personal
reinvention...

Oh, come on!

I'm getting recommendations
of your song

from people who
don't even know me.

That's like famous adjacent.

I'll admit, feels good
to put myself out there.

I'm all about it.

But, what does you-know-who
think about your new brand?

We actually haven't talked much.
So, maybe he didn't even notice.

Oh, he noticed.

Yo, Nini.

Ricky, hey.

Oh, what was that, Carlos?

You need me for
a costume fitting

even though you're not even here

so this makes no sense.
I got you.

Duty calls.

You're not returning my texts.

I've been really busy.

For three days? I mean we
haven't talked since North High.

Yeah, crazy weekend.

Because of your
new music account?

Uh,
it's not actually a big deal.

Your music's fire, Nina!

Thanks.

Okay,
maybe it's sort of a thing.

So, I'm just going to ask,

did you make that channel

because of everything I said about
keeping yourself under glass?

I mean, is this you un-glassed?

No offense, Ricky,
but it's not actually about you.

Okay,

then, why is the channel called
"Nina"?

Good morning, East High,

and welcome to Career Day.

Juniors, stop by the booth
in the AV club hallway

for a career aptitude test.

I'm just saying,
when you make a point

of changing your
name on social media,

it feels kind of personal.

It is personal. To me.

Nina's my given name.

I'm being my own person

and that seems like something

you can maybe be
happy for me about.

There's so many people who
are inspired by my channel.

Like this girl in London

said that the rose song helped
her through a rocky time.

- Seriously?
- Literally those exact words.

See, just, like, scroll down.

Neen!

Phenomenal Woman apparel
is handing out swag.

Please.

Who is this guy?

"Let me know if you're
down to collab."

Oh, God. Oh, no. No, no, no...

I'm heading to my parents booth.
You want some pizza?

Unless it's magic pizza that
can help me go back in time.

Wait, what?

Dude, I think I just messed up.
Big time.

I just deleted a, maybe, very
important comment on Nini's Insta.

Yeah. "Oh."

So do you guys have any
guesses on the guest speaker?

Unless it's Alan Menken himself

coming to apologize for
what just happened to us,

I'm not here.

Ooh, I would die if it was,
like, Greta Gerwig.

You know you're not
picking the person, right?

Whoever it is,
I'm sure they'll remind us

to "seize the day
and then let it go."

Every year, same speech.

Wait. What does that even mean?

I was hoping that you knew.

- Since...
- No.

No one heard that.

Yeah. Gina and I have
gotten a little bit closer

since North High when we were
pretending to be together.

But, no, that was just pretend.

We're friends.

Why? Did she say something?

Class, class.

I am thrilled to present

one of East High's most
generous benefactors,

Mr. Cash Caswell,
with tips on success in life.

Well played, Caswell.

Surprise.

Thank you, Mrs. Day.

Anytime.

Students.

It's an honor.

Success is all about legacies.

The ones that we inherit.

And the ones that we build.

I'm lucky to have a son that
carries the Caswell name with pride.

In fact,
I wasn't gonna do this today,

come on up here, Eej.

My father gave me this
when I got into Duke.

Now it's yours.

Wait, what?

Congratulations, EJ.

Made some calls, son.

They changed their mind.
You're in.

Now, how many of you are
familiar with the phrase,

"seize the day?"

Way to go, "Eej."

- What do you think?
- Looks good.

- Too business? Jacket off?
- Other one.

Too sexy, okay.

Business cas.

It's been three long hours

since East High was
barred from rehearsals

and I must admit, I was going
just a little stir-crazy.

But then it hit me.

Oh, wait. That's awkward.

It's Career Day.

And I thought it might be fun

to dust off the old Meisner
and tread the boards a little.

Coffee

Benjamin has generously agreed

to help me sh**t a commercial
audition for a local coffee shop.

It's just one line.

"The taste of coffee,
the feeling of home."

How hard can it be?

Curtains up.

Uh, I think you mean "action."

Just roll it.

"The taste of home,
the feeling of coffee."

Don't you mean...

Yep. Yep. Do-over.

Take your time.

Let me just...

Yeah.
Lucie Locket lost her pocket.

Yes. Okay.

Curtains up.

Action!

The taste of feeling.

No. The coffee of...

Oh, my God. What is happening?

Is it me? Is it Zackey Roy?

And curtains down.

Thank you. Five.

Of course, we cannot rehearse

on the day we were supposed
to run Chip's big scene.

Does Chip have any big scenes?

Do you maybe wanna
rephrase that?

Well, there are no small parts,
only small tea cups.

I just made it worse.

Excuse me.
I'm going to get glitter.

The thing is, after
everything's that happened,

I don't know where
her head's at.

I mean, I don't even know

if I'm supposed to
call her Nini or Nina.

Yeah.

But admitting that I
deleted that comment

will just make things worse.

- Right?
- Right.

On the other hand, I don't
wanna keep things from Nini.

I should come clean.

She'll be mad,
but then she'll forgive me

and everything will be fine.

Preach.

You really think it's
going to be fine?

I was talking to a podcast.

I was saying,

maybe this thing with Nini gets
worse before it gets better,

but then we'll fix it. Right?

- You've been here before, Ricky.
- Yeah.

It's just...

I'm gonna head over there.

Junior class!
Our career test results are in.

"Big Red,
you are a quiet introvert

"whose selfless
nature is perfect

for a career in the
service industry."

The service industry?

That's what it says.

"Jobs you might
be well suited for

include mail delivery
and hospitality."

Okay.
You wanna take the test again?

Should I?

Well, I'm just saying,
they haven't seen you tap dance.

That's true.

What did Miss Jenn say?

"Chin up and head down."

Ignore the test.

Come on.

I'm fine.
I don't need a bodyguard.

I'm not your bodyguard. I'm your
mother. And part-time therapist.

Well,
I don't need a therapist either.

But, like,
did Howie even like me

or was he just trying to
get intel on East High?

Have you considered askin' him?

It sounds so simple
when you say it.

Well, I have lived through a
couple of relationships in my day.

But Dad never made a mistake.

No, he made plenty.
And I made a few myself.

I think the point is, if
you're really working together,

you'll make fewer
mistakes over time.

And your father always
had a gift for begging.

The thing is, I just...

I just don't know
if I can trust him.

Kourtney...

You the same girl who started
designing all your own clothes

- when you were just three years old.
- And?

And you have always known
what's best for you.

Trust yourself. I know I do.

All right. I gotta...

I know. But you got this.

Cannoli on the house, Ms. G.

How'd you know I
needed this right now?

I live to serve.

Thank you.

I made all the afternoon
deliveries in record time.

Okay.

And did some side work.

I... cleaned your desk a little.

Maybe you cleaned my desk.
Or you don't even work here.

Who can say what's true anymore?

Kourtney, uh,

- what do you want me to do?
- Take a hint.

I didn't tell you the truth

because I wanted you
to get to know me.

Not the competition from
North High, just me.

- Howie, I don't do this.
- Don't do what?

The boys. The drama.
Not my thing.

But I made an exception.

I let you in, and you
couldn't even trust me enough

to be honest about who you are?

You know who I am.

I know who I am,

but I didn't even know
you could sing like that.

So, who knows what
else you're hiding?

I'm fine.

Yeah, I can tell.

Thought you're helping
out with the crew.

Yeah. Turns out I can't paint,
or hammer.

Which shouldn't surprise me
since my career aptitude test

revealed that I have
no profitable skills.

I should...

I'm gonna get back to work.

Nini, look.
I'm here to, like, try and fix

whatever's going on between us.

I mean, like, obviously we both
wanna make this work, right?

We're doing everything we can.

- That's why you came back from YAC...
- Ricky, stop.

I love you. And I missed you,
but I did not come home for you.

But when I called you, you...

I was already in Salt Lake.

Got off the bus before
you ever called.

So, what are you saying?
You came back in spite of me?

No. When you called, I didn't
wanna hurt your feelings.

So,
being honest is a problem now.

Look, where are we?

I don't know. But hearing you
say you wished I would come home

and leave my dream behind was,
like, a lot of feelings at once.

Okay,
I'm a little lost here, too.

I don't even know what's
going on with you?

Honestly,
it's kind of freaking me out.

First,
you wait till the last second

to tell me you're
leaving for YAC.

And you went behind my back

to ask Miss Jenn to give
me a part in the show

even though I told
you I didn't want one.

Then you wrote that
rose song about us

instead of just telling
me how you feel.

And when my song got cut,
it's like you didn't even care.

And I found out you didn't
come home to be with me.

I was trying to do
the right thing.

So was I.

Guys, you might wanna take
it down a couple notches.

- You're scaring the real customers.
- I'm out of here.

Okay. Come on in.

I'm opening my eyes.

Are you the new
Career Day speaker?

Actually, I kind of am.

You may not know this,

but you are looking
at the vice president

of the Nostradamus Society,

devoted to future sight
and prognostication

throughout the Greater Salt
Lake Unified School District.

You and your pillow talk.

I saw your future, Big Red.

And I'm here to tell you,
it's bright.

Voila!

I know.

Is that...

- Is someone running an ultra-marathon?
- You're wiry.

What about food service?

Three Michelin stars, baby.

You are the toast of Paris.

You okay?

Is that really what
you want for me?

To be in Paris?

No. Look, I didn't mean to...

It's not for me, it's for you.

If you can dream it,
you can do it.

May I?

This is my dream, Ash.

Being with my friends and family
and working in the pizza shop.

But you can be
anything you want.

Honestly, the only other thing
that makes me happy is you.

But, like, I know you're
gonna be a big star.

So, maybe it's not enough.

Okay, that's...

That's not what I
was trying to...

I've gotta, uh, I gotta go home.

You can keep this.
I don't need it.

Okay, I just wrote a
backstory for my character

and spent six minutes as
an actual coffee bean.

I am ready.

Wait, what's happening?

I just thought you might
wanna take a load off.

Stop thinking about the
competition for a second.

French roast, your favorite.

And, uh,
what was the line again?

"The taste of coffee,
the feeling of home."

Well, now I just have to
do it again for the camera.

You just did.

Benjamin.

This may be the nicest thing
anyone has ever done for me.

I... I'm sure your boyfriend has
a trick or two up his sleeve.

Actually, um,
we put the brakes on everything.

In light of preserving

my student-teacher
relationship with Ricky.

I would imagine that

colleagues aren't supposed to
fraternize for similar reasons.

Well, anyway, uh...

I...
Good luck with your audition.

I... They would be
crazy not to hire you.

I'm gonna put this together and
I'll send you the video tonight.

Thank you, Benjamin.
For everything.

You don't get enough
credit around here.

I don't think you need
a fallback, by the way.

I think you are the most
dedicated teacher at this school.

It's open, Ash.

- EJ.
- Hey, what are you doing here?

I live here?

Right. Sorry. I...
Little out of it.

Is my cousin around?

Oh, she went out to buy
some kind of new shirt.

- Yeah, I didn't ask.
- Oh, okay.

You wanna help me with this?

It keeps getting tangled.

Sure.

- Okay. Yeah, just hold that.
- All right.

Congrats on Duke.

Why didn't you tell anyone?

I didn't really get in.

But your dad...

I mean, I did, but only
because he made it happen.

So, you're in, right?

Isn't that what
you always wanted?

Look, I don't wanna
say this the wrong way.

I am incredibly grateful
for the privilege, but...

But you didn't earn it.

Yeah.

It's just that my entire life
has been mapped out for me

for as long as I can remember.
You know?

Not really.

I'm always one natural disaster
away from landing in a new place.

Yeah, what is that like?

Sometimes stressful,
sometimes freeing.

I don't really worry
much about the future

'cause I can't control it.

I just try to forge
ahead wherever I land.

Well, you always seem
to know what you want.

Okay, so what do you want?

I don't know.

Okay. Close your eyes.

So, EJ, when you think about
your life, what do you see?

I see a guy who
cheated at water polo.

And who tried to bribe Miss Jenn

into giving him
the part of Troy.

And there's more.

My turn.

Can't wait.

When I think of you,

I see the guy who bought me a
plane ticket back to East High

so I could be a
part of the show.

A guy whose birthday video
for Carlos made everybody cry.

I see someone who tries really
hard to do the right thing.

He fails a lot.

But he keeps on trying.

That's what you think of me?

EJ, you are a really good guy.

Maybe if you just forgave yourself
a little, you'd see what I...

the rest of us see,

and maybe then,

you'd recover from all your
exhausting good fortune.

Yeah, that's fair.

You wanna know what
I see right now?

No, you don't have to do that.

I see one of the
bravest people I know.

Hi, roomie.

I just got your text, EJ.
You wanted to talk?

Thanks. I think I'm okay now.

Knock, knock.

No boys allowed,
unless your name is Ricky Bowen.

Man, I can't believe this
treehouse is still standing.

My moms build stuff to last.

No kidding.

Do you remember how big this
thing felt, when we were little?

The Forest Palace.

Thanks for comin'.

Yeah. I'm glad you texted.

I thought it'd be
good or meaningful,

I guess, to meet in our old...

Hideaway?

Man,
I'm having flashbacks to the...

I knew this was gonna happen.

We were kids, okay? I didn't
know braces could interlock.

It was still a solid first kiss,
though.

The best.

Feels like years ago.

So? What did your results say?

Your career test thing?

Oh, um... Just that I
should be my own boss.

That I'm independent-minded,
go figure.

Look, Ricky, what I said
before about leaving YAC,

part of it was for you,

but part of it was because
it just didn't feel right.

But lately,
I've been thinking a lot about

how I liked who I was there.

It didn't feel right,
but you liked who you were?

Yeah. I mean, I got in
trouble a couple of times,

but at least I was taking risks.

You know, I had a new name,
fresh start.

I've never had that here.

Always been Nini and Ricky.

I mean, it's literally
painted on the wall.

Yeah, I think I've been
trying to protect that.

It feels safe.

See, the thing is,
I don't wanna feel safe.

That's gonna be my moms asking
if you wanna stay for dinner.

I deleted a comment on
your new Insta today.

- What?
- When you gave me your phone,

someone was scouting you
for a music showcase thing,

and I erased it,

and then I couldn't unerase it.

Ricky, that's not okay.

I agree. I know.
I know none of this is.

I'm just...

I'm sorry at this point.

I've been trying to
do everything I can

to make things work
because I love you so much.

Honestly,
I don't like who I'm becoming,

chasing you down all the time.

I don't like running away.

Look, uh...

it seems like we've been out of
sync ever since I got back home.

Maybe we both just, uh, need
some space to figure things out.

Last time we took a break,
we ended up broken up.

Are we breaking up?

I don't wanna hold you back.

I don't want to hold
you back either.

Can I just hold you now?

It's okay.

You know, I got you.

Goodbye, Nini.

I'm gonna head
out for the night.

Unless you need something else.

I'm good. Thanks.

Can I say something to
make you reconsider?

Honestly,
I think we're done talking now.

Hopeless, as my dream dies

As the time flies

Love a lost illusion

Helpless, unforgiven

Cold and driven

To this sad conclusion

No beauty could move me

No goodness improve me...

No power on earth

If I can't love her

No passion could reach me

No lesson could teach me

How I could have loved her

And make her love me, too

If I can't love her

Then who

Long ago I should have seen

All the things I could have been

Careless and unthinking,
I moved onward

No pain could be deeper...

Hi, Dad. Uh, we need to talk.

I'm not going to Duke.

If I can't love her

No spirit could win me

No hope left within me

Hope I could have loved her

And that she'd set me free

But it's not to be

If I can't love her

Let the world be done with me

If I can't love her

If I can't love her