AN: This story takes place in Troy and Gabriella's junior year. They aren't dating yet. This is my first HSM fanfic, so reviews are welcomed.
"Hi, Chad," Gabriella Montez called out to a guy whose hair exceeded the volume of the basketball he was clutching in his arms.
Chad Danforth nodded a greeting at the petite brunette from across the gym. "Hey, Gabriella."
She entered the gym tentatively, her heels clicking softly against the wood of the gym floor. Even if basketball season had ended months ago, she still felt as if she was intruding on practices or something, since the team still got together and played in the gym after school. "Have you seen Troy?"
"He should be in the locker room," Chad said. "Want me to tell him that you're looking for him when he comes out?"
She smiled at him. "Thanks, Chad."
"No, problem," he said, returning to his one-on-one game with Jason, another member of the Wildcat basketball team. "Later, Gabriella."
"Bye," she called out in parting as she exited the gym. Outside of the gym doors, in the hallway were a group of girls. Gabriella didn't like to judge or stereotype, but she knew that this particular group of girls wasn't exactly the friendliest at East High.
They glanced at her briefly before returning to their conversation. Gabriella walked a couple of yards away from them before settling against the opposite wall, waiting for Troy. It was Friday afternoon and the two friends had decided to blow off some steam from end-of-the-year stress that was frequently associated with SATs, AP testing—well, for her, anyway—and finals.
The girls next to her let an obnoxious fit of laughter, bursting her thought bubble. It was the kind of laughter that said, "Hey, look at us. Look at how much fun we're having."
Gabriella glanced at them, blushing when she saw them staring at her. They all smirked at her when they noticed that they had her attention.
She forced a smile, although she was sure it turned out to be more of a grimace.
"You're Gabriella Montez, right?"
She nodded, not sure where this was going. Ever since she and Troy had sang at the callbacks in their sophomore year, the entire school knew who she was. She wasn't the freaky math girl anymore. She was the freaky best friend of Wildcat basketball star Troy Bolton.
"So, are you and Troy Bolton, like, dating?" one of the girls asked.
"Um, no." It was true. They weren't dating. But ask Taylor McKessie, best girl friend of Gabriella, and she would say that the two were head over heels in love with each other, but were just too stubborn to admit it.
"Oh."
"Oh?" Gabriella said, raising an eyebrow. She didn't like the way the blonde had said it. It was full of...well, drama. Not drama as in Ms. Darbus's theater of the arts, but drama as in rumor-mill-girl-catfight drama.
"He has a girlfriend, you know."
"What?" Gabrielle shook her head, her brown curls bobbing back and forth. "That's absurd. I'm his best friend. If he was going out with someone, he'd tell me."
"Maybe," the blonde said, smirking.
She knew that she should just walk away. Not listen to anymore of the garbage that was spilling out of these girls' mouths. But she couldn't. It was like a ten-car pileup on the side of the highway that you can't help but slow down and gawk at.
"He's been going out with her since March."
What?! But it was May now. Almost June. He couldn't—no, wouldn't—go three months dating someone without telling her. Could he?
It wasn't as if he even had the time to hide something as big as this from her anyway. Although Jack Bolton had eased up a bit after the callbacks, he was riding Troy about keeping in shape for scholarships next year. Plus, he had SATs in June...and finals right after that. There was no way he could hide something like this from her.
But then again, she had been busy too. Cram sessions for AP exams had occupied her time in April and early May. And she too had been preoccupied with studying for SATs and finals. In fact, she and Troy hadn't had much of a chance to hang out since Spring Break in late March.
They both had been busy. While she had been busy with academic commitments, he had been busy with his girlfriend.
The wheels in Gabriella's head were now spinning, trying to process all of this newfound information.
"Hey, Gabriella," a voice said brightly.
The wheels in her head stopped spinning as she turned around to face her best friend. "Hi, Troy," she said, her expression slightly crestfallen.
He noticed. "What's wrong?"
Something inside of her snapped. She wasn't sure what it was. It was as if her heart had been snapped in two. Broken, shattered, and trampled on.
"Nothing's wrong," she said unhappily. She crossed her arms around her chest and walked away, down the hall.
Troy stood there, unsure of what to do next. He noticed the group of girls next to him, watching the entire thing intently.
It was a few minutes before Gabriella heard footsteps behind her. Instead of slowing down and waiting for him to catch up as she normally would if she were rational, she sped up.
"Gabriella, wait!" he called behind her.
She did the opposite. Breaking out into a run, she ran out the doors of East High and to the front. She raced past the water fountain and onto the sidewalk where she ran across the street.
"Gabriella! Gabi! Wait!" Troy ran after her, knowing that the entire thing was insane. He had emerged from the locker room, freshly showered, expecting to spend a great afternoon with his best friend eating ice cream and watching movies. Now he was chasing after her across town, getting strange looks from people. And he didn't even know why she was running away from him.
"Gabi! Slow down! I just want to talk!"
"I have nothing to say to you, Troy Bolton!"
He winced, knowing that she was angry at him. About what, he had no clue.
"Gabi...!" He slowed down, watching as she turned a familiar corner. Despite the situation and the fact that Gabriella was definitely mad at him, he smiled. He knew where she was going.
He was right. Instead of following her around the block, he had doubled up and ran back to school, knowing that she would come there.
"What are you doing here?" she asked in shock. He was sitting on their bench in their spot. The spot that they had both dubbed as Kindergarten.
He shrugged, as if it were normal for him to chase her around town and meet back here. "I knew you would come here."
She sighed, defeated. Her plan hadn't worked. She was hoping that he'd get lost chasing her around town or give up. That way, she could go around the block, back to school, and to their spot.
Gabriella threw her bag on the ground and sat next to him on the bench. "My feet are killing me."
"That's what you get for trying to outrun me in heels," he said, bumping shoulders with her.
The gesture made her smile, but then she remembered that she was mad at him. "Don't," she said, frowning.
He looked at her, confused. "What's going on, Gabriella?"
"Nothing."
He appeared skeptical. "Unless chasing you around town and coming back to school on a Friday afternoon is nothing, then you'll have to try again."
She huffed, knowing that she was being childish. But she didn't care anymore. It was just too much. Him having a girlfriend. Him not telling her. Him crushing her heart.
"You're not going to talk to me, huh?" he said, nodding. "Well, I guess we'll just sit here until it gets dark...and the janitor comes to lock up the doors...and we'll be stuck here until Monday...which means that you won't have your computer to do homework and I won't—"
"You have a girlfriend!" she half yelled.
"What?"
She turned to look at him. She studied him, his mouth agape and completely taken aback. Was it just her or was he a little pale?
"Uh...what?"
"You heard me the first time," she said sternly. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Gabriella...whatever you heard—"
"Troy, do you or do you not have a girlfriend?" she said loudly, ignoring him.
"I—well, I wouldn't exactly call her a—"
"Oh, this is just great," she muttered, scooting away from him on the bench to the other side.
"Gabi—"
"Don't call me that."
He winced. "Okay, Gabriella...I'm going to explain something, okay? But you have to promise not to blow up at me until after I'm done."
She remained silent and Troy took it as her agreement.
"Um, this girl...she's not really my girlfriend. I mean, she's a girl and she's my friend, but she's not my girlfriend."
She snorted in disbelief. It wasn't very lady-like of her, but she was beyond caring.
"The thing is...I sort of told some guys that um, this girl and I were going out. Except that we weren't." He rubbed his neck sheepishly.
"So, basically you lied to them just like you lied to me," Gabriella said bluntly.
"Yes. Wait, no! I never lied to you, Gabriella," Troy said defensively.
"Right. You just didn't tell the truth."
"No, I—"
"Why did you lie, Troy? To the guys, I mean," she asked, interrupting him.
"Well, this girl...I...um..."
If the situation weren't so dire, Gabriella would have found his tongue-tied attempts at explanation funny. "You what, Troy?"
"I like her," he mumbled, refusing to meet her eyes.
"Oh." She looked away, staring at her shoes. She felt her heart breaking all over again.
"This girl...I like her a lot."
"Oh."
He looked up, noticing that she was avoiding his eyes. "One of the guys on the team was planning to ask her out. And I didn't want him to. So, I lied."
Gabriella closed her eyes, feeling all the anger ebb away, leaving only a broken heart. Her hopes shattered, she opened her eyes, and quickly stood up. "I'll see you later, Troy," she muttered. She grabbed her bag and was about to make a run for the stairs when she felt his hand on her arm.
"Gabi, wait. I have to tell you—"
"There's nothing to tell, Troy," she said quietly, turning around to face him. She bravely met his eyes. "You like this girl. And...as much as I would like that girl to be me, it's not. So—"
"Wait, what?" Troy took a step back, his eyes wide. "Gabriella—"
"Troy, I'm trying to be supportive here. So, would you just shut up and let me finish?" she snapped, feeling some of the anger returning.
He couldn't help it. He knew that it was a totally improper reaction to the situation, but he did it anyway. Troy Bolton laughed.
But he quickly regretted it when he saw hurt flash in her eyes. "Gabriella, I didn't—"
"You didn't what, Troy? You didn't mean to laugh at me?" She was getting riled up again. "Sure, go ahead and laugh at the freaky math girl, here. The freaky math girl that no one would dare date because she's too busy making flashcards or organizing her notes! And—"
She was cut off by his lips. The kiss only lasted for a few seconds, but to Gabriella, it felt like a lifetime.
When he pulled away, she tried to speak. "But, I thought..."
He smiled at her. "It's you, Gabriella. You're the girl who's my friend, but not my girlfriend. You're the girl that I lied to the guys about. You're the girl that I like—a lot."
"I thought..." She was cut off by his lips again.
"You think too much," he said seriously once he pulled away.
He was right. She did think too much. So, instead of thinking, she went with her heart. She smiled.
And he smiled back. "Gabriella Montez, would you like to accompany me to get some ice cream?"
"I would love to, Troy Bolton."
The two friends held hands, their fingers intertwining. Together, they left Kindergarten and entered the high school that would take them out into Albuquerque and eventually the rest of their lives.