Magnets
Summary: "You and I don't click. We are like magnets, we repel each other." Troy Bolton is loud and talkative. He's the guy quiet Gabriella can't stand. Her perception changes however when they are stuck inside their school during a snowstorm.
Part 1-Stuck Here with You
"Who knew Albuquerque was even capable of being snowed-in," Troy remarked.
It had been exactly an hour since they received the news they would be stuck inside the school until the out of the blue snowstorm would stop. It had been 30 minutes since they had last contacted their parents on their cell phones. And it had been 24 minutes since they had seen the light. Not only was there snow currently piling up in the streets of small town Albuquerque, something incredibly rare and unexpected, but the electricity seemed to have gone out as well.
"I really shouldn't have stayed to do my homework. Gosh, if I wouldn't have been such a big nerd, I wouldn't have been stuck here with the most annoying guy in the world," Gabriella said, irritated.
"You talking about me?"
"Of course I'm talking about you! Do you see anyone else beside us here?"
"I think there's some teachers left though."
"Pretty sure they all left as soon as the bell rang."
"I don't know Gabriella, I mean they wouldn't have left the school unlocked or without the security system. And trust me, I know there is a security system, 'cause last time me and Chad tried to uh borrow a basketball in the gym and well, cops came."
"Your dad must've been thrilled," Gabriella retorted flatly.
"Pfft, quite the opposite actually. He was furious. Like, steam out of ears furious. He had to pay, you know? A big fine. I actually had to work as the janitor for a few weeks to pay it back," Troy continued, not at all fazed by her attitude.
"See, this is why I hardly ever talk to you."
"Yeah, I don't get that. Everyone loves to talk to me."
"Except me."
"Except you. Why?"
"You talk too much," she responded.
"And you don't talk enough. Like I have you in almost all of my classes and I think I've never heard you say more than 2 words during them. Well, I mean, except when we have presentations of course, but those don't count."
In response she only let out a big annoyed sigh.
"Kill me now."
"What and leave me all alone? Nah. Even if you're grumpy and serious all the time, it's 10 times better than being all by myself."
"I don't see how being with me and being alone is much different, to be honest. I don't like to talk. I actually would rather we stay in silence for the rest of this nightmare."
"It's way different because you at least reply to me. For someone who doesn't like to talk, you seem to have no problem communicating with me."
"I'll just go to sleep and hope by the time I wake up this is over," she declared, ignoring him.
She lied on her side, not seeming to mind the hard dirty floor.
"No, you can't go to sleep now! It's only like 6. We haven't even eaten yet and I'm starving."
"Go steal from the cafeteria for all I care."
"Want me to bring you something?"
"No, I'm not really hungry."
"If you say so," he shrugged standing up. "But, what if I forget which classroom you're in? The lights are out and well, it's starting to become dark outside."
"That's fine by me if you forget which room it is," she replied.
"Why are you so anti-social Gabi? I mean, would it kill you to just entertain me for a while?"
"Don't call me Gabi," she snapped.
"Why not Gabi? You don't like nicknames Gabi?" he mocked.
Gabriella let out a loud exasperated sigh and stood up.
"Fine. You win. I'll go to the caf with you. But only if you promise you won't call me Gabi or any other stupid nickname you come up with."
"Deal," he grinned. "Oh, Gabi, uh Gabriella, I have a feeling we're going to become the best of friends by the time this is over."
"That is, if I don't kill you first," she mumbled, walking out of the classroom.
She was surprised when he started to chuckle.
"Oh Gabi, you're hilarious. Who knew you had a sense of humour?" he declared following her.
"What did I say about you calling me Gabi?"
"Why are you bringing this up? I thought I said I wouldn't do it."
"But you did call me Gabi. After we made the deal."
"No, I didn't."
"Yes you did."
"I don't think so."
"Ugh, just don't do it again. Or else I'll leave you all by yourself. And I'm serious."
"I'll just follow you. No big deal."
"Then, I'll run."
"I'll run after you then. This'll be good workout for basketball."
"I'll hide in the girl's bathroom."
"There's no one except us in the school, so I'll follow you there."
"Ugh, you're impossible!"
"You just gotta accept the fact that until they rescue us you're stuck with me Gabi."
"Ha! You said Gabi."
And without another word she dashed through the school halls. Shell-shocked he stood there for a moment, mouth open.
"She actually ran away from me," he said to himself.
Part of him was impressed, part of him was disappointed but a bigger part of him was amused. Highly amused.
"Five, four, three, two, one. Ready or not, here I come!" he called out, running in the direction he'd seen her disappear.
As he tried to spot Gabriella, he felt as if he was brought back to his childhood days when he and his friends used to play hide and seek at his house.
-HSM-
Gabriella pushed open the doors to the staircase and climbed the stairs two at a time.
"Ready or not, here I come!" she heard echoing through the halls behind her.
"He's actually amused by this. I'm trying to run away from him and he thinks it's all a game. What a weirdo," she thought, pushing the doors leading to the second floor.
She knew she had to find a good spot to hide because he would probably find her soon. She felt her adrenaline rush to her vein as she heard the staircase doors open and close; he was getting nearer. She broke into a run, desperate to make it around the corner before he reached the second floor.
"I see you!" she heard him cry out.
She squealed and doubled her effort as she heard his sneakers rattle the floor. She would never admit it, but this chasing game was actually fun. Looking both ways, she tried to spot an open door all the while not stopping. Lucky for her, when he had darted off after her she was at the end of the hallway, so she still had a bit of time.
"Surrender now Gabriella! I've got you!"
"Never!" she yelled back.
That's when she spotted an open door. Suddenly struck with an idea, she hid inside it, but left the door open, to make him think she wasn't there. Spying through the small slice of space between the door and the doorway, she felt victorious when she saw him running past it. She waited until he was at the end of the hallway before she quietly came out. His back being turned she ran in the opposite direction.
"You little sneak!" he cried out, spotting her.
"Tired yet Bolton?" she laughed, hearing him pant.
She squealed when she felt his strong arms encircled her waist.
"No way, not even close," he grinned. "But as fun as this was I'm kind of starving even more now, so what do you say we leave this for after dinner?"
"If you think I'm gonna be up for this after eating, then you're nuts," she said, trying to catch her breath.
"Aw Gabi, are you not used to this kind of intense physical activity?" he teased pulling her closer. "I thought this was the kind of thing you did in your spare time."
"What? Running away from people? No, that's just you."
"So, I'm special then."
"Can you let you of me now? You kind of smell bad."
"I can't be smelling bad. I just took a shower like 2 hours ago!" he protested, insulted.
"Well maybe you just have a strong BO, therefore need to take two showers."
"Or maybe it's 'cause you made me run like a maniac all around the school," he retorted. "Not that I'm complaining, of course. 'Cause I mean, that was fun."
"Whatever. Can you just let go off me now?" she demanded, rolling her eyes.
"And risk you running away again? I think not. So from now on, you're just gonna have to get used to my yummy scent."
"Your scent is nowhere near yummy, and I'm too tired to run."
"Yeah well, maybe I don't want to let go because I like you in my arms," he said, wiggling his eyebrows.
Scary part was, she couldn't tell if he was serious or not and, better yet, she couldn't tell if she wanted him to be or not. Nevertheless she jabbed him in the stomach with her elbow. He grunted in response but let her go.
"Too bad," she smiled sweetly. "Now, let's go eat."
"Oh, now you're hungry."
"Not really. I just want to check the food supplies 'cause who knows when we'll be able to get out of here."
"Aw you don't have to lie to me Gabi; it's natural to want to eat. Besides, I like my women with big stomachs."
Gabriella only rolled her eyes and walked faster, hoping it would make her companion stop talking.
"Gasp. Gabriella Montez, are you ignoring me?" he inquired quickening his pace to be by her side. "Oh brother, what have I done? What could I have possibly done to make my only living companion not want to talk to me? Is it because I refused to clean my room when dad asked me? Is it 'cause I stole Chad's lunch today?"
"It's because you have a big mouth that won't ever shut up," she interrupted, trying to fight off the amused smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
"Gasp. Me, big mouth? I'm hurt Gabriella. I really am. How can you declare something as stupidly, ridiculous as that? I mean, it's one thing to comment about my incredibly long feet, but to insult my beautiful mouth? Now, that's taking it over the edge."
She didn't know if it was because of his choice of words or his over-the-top insulted expression but she started to laugh.
"What's funny huh Gabi?" he mockingly inquired, tugging at her sleeve. "You insult my big mouth and then you laugh at me? How insensitive! You, Gabriella Montez, are just a big bully," he continued with the biggest grin on his face.
For some reason he found himself feeling exhilarating by the fact he'd managed to make her laugh.
"You're crazy," she responded, after having calmed down a little.
"And you're beautiful when you laugh," he declared sincerely, the same huge grin plastered on his face. "You should do it more often."
"And then what? Look like an idiot who just randomly cracks up laughing in the middle of the street?"
"It could be an idea," he shrugged.
"You're crazy," she repeated, shaking her head. "Oh look, cafeteria."
"Note to self: my new goal for the following days is to make her laugh this freely one more time," he thought, following her inside.
"Hey, do you think there are chances that the cafeteria lady forgot to empty the cash register?" he questioned.
"Even if there was money would you even take it?" Gabriella inquired rolling her eyes.
"Of course! I mean here we are, stuck in this stupid school for God knows how long and the only reason we're here in the first place is because earlier we had classes. Therefore if we didn't have classes, we wouldn't be stuck here. Ergo, cash register money, or any kind of money here, is the least they can do to compensate."
"I'm not even gonna comment on that because I simply have no word."
"I see I've stunned you into silence with my genius."
"You know what? From now on, I'm not gonna listen to your nonsense."
"What nonsense? I'm always saying very useful things."
"See? Nonsense," she replied referring to his statement. "Nonsense that I'm gonna ignore from this point on. Oh look, sandwiches. A dozen of them."
"Jackpot!" he exclaimed at the discovery.
"Okay, so there is uh egg sandwich, tuna, turkey, chicken, and ew, is that peanut butter and jelly?"
"Oh I've got dibs on that one; it's my fave!" Troy exclaimed.
"Seriously? Ew," Gabriella said scrunching her nose in disgust.
"Are you kidding me Gabriella? PBJ is da boss. It rocks my socks. How can it not own your heart?"
"I guess my heart missed the memo," she replied drily. "And I had one when I was 5 and threw up after wards."
"That's 'cause you haven't tasted one I made," he countered. "You should know I make the best Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich in the whole state. I swear, when we get out of here I'll make you one and it'll blow your mind."
"Uh, it's okay. I'm perfectly happy living without liking pbj."
"No, I'm telling you. I make the absolute best. Like, you don't even get it. They'll turn your world upside down."
"Whatever, let's just eat," she responded rolling her eyes.
She handed him his beloved sandwich and took a chicken one for herself.
"So, where do you want to sleep tonight?" he inquired unwrapping the plastic wrapper. "Any preferences?"
"Uh, I don't know. Somewhere comfortable and warm, 'cause to be honest, the floor was kind of solid."
"You can sleep on me if you want. I make a damn good pillow," he suggested taking a bite out of his dinner.
"You serious?" she choked on hers.
"Yeah. Not only am I incredibly comfy but I'm also warm and smell good."
She only looked at him, eyes wide. Immensely shocked by his nerve.
"If you think I'm gonna sleep on you then you're nuts," she finally said.
"Why? Lots of girls would take me up on that offer."
"Well not me."
"Why not?"
"'Cause I really don't like you."
"Why not?"
"We already went over this," she sighed impatiently. "You talk too much in class and make us waste time by babbling about insignificant stuff with the teacher."
"Yeah but still. I'm not a bad guy. I don't smoke, I don't bully people, I'm not an asshole, and I would say I'm rather good looking on top of having a great sense of humour. So I really don't understand your profound dislike."
"Why do you care? If we hadn't been stuck here you wouldn't have give a damn of why someone like me could hate you."
"What makes you think that?" he asked cocking an eyebrow. "I care about everyone I meet. Whether I know their names or not, their opinions matter to me."
She grudgingly had to admit he was right. Troy always seemed genuinely curious and interested in everyone he met. Whenever someone would contradict him, instead of getting mad he would try to see it from their point of views.
"Is it because I don't talk to you in class? Because I try, I really do. But whenever I'm about to start a conversation, someone always interrupts because, as I said earlier, I'm likeable."
Again, she reluctantly had to admit he was right. She did see him try to make conversation with her; after she was in a lot of his classes. Whenever he attempted though, she would always internally roll her eyes and pray someone would intervene and stop him from talking to her.
"Do I really need a reason? I mean, you can't like everybody. Some people you just happen to like instantly, others you have to warm up to them, and sometimes you just dislike them. You don't need a reason, you just do. Some people you click more with, while others you don't. You and I don't click. We are like magnets, we repel each other."
"Magnets huh? Funny you would compare us to magnets 'cause, correct me if I'm wrong, but people often refer to two inseparable people as magnets too. You might be the first one I've known to use magnet to describe two people who can't stand each other," Troy replied, furrowing his eyebrow deep in thought. "But I guess I can see your point. While there is a particular side in which two magnets will connect and stick to each other tightly, when you flip it over, they are like impossible to assemble."
"Like I've always said," Gabriella stated.
"It's weird how we all have different perception of things huh? I mean, a glass of water that is only filled halfway, one may say it's half full while the other says it is half empty. I say a magnet is two inseparable people, you say it is two people who can't stand each other. That's like so cool!"
"I wasn't saying that to be cool," she declared.
"I know, but like, honestly Gabi, this blows my mind."
"Wanna know why our perception clashes?" she interrupts.
"Heck yeah."
"'Cause you're an optimist type of person and I'm pessimist."
"What does that mean?"
"You naturally see the good in life, whether it be in people or situations. While I see the bad things."
"How can someone only see the bad things in life? There are so many good things in the world!"
"How can someone only see the good things in life? There are so many bad things in the world," she responded, repeating his words.
"That's flipping great!" he laughed. "Oh Gabi, who knew the day I would have my very first philosophical discussion would be at 16 when we'd be stuck with each other inside the school?"
"I would really like it if you would stop calling me Gabi."
"You know what I've decided? From now on, you and I are gonna be best friends."
"Uh, why would you decide that?" Gabriella blinked in surprise.
"'Cause you're like the most interesting person I know and I'm just dying to uncover the mystery that is Gabriella Montez."
The brunette inwardly groaned. She knew all hope she had that he would leave her alone would not come true.
-HSM-
I gotta be honest. I'm seriously having writer's block for all my other stories. This new one is hopefully going to help me overcome it.
Review?