Gabriella Bolton sat at home after a long day at work. She had picked both of her children up from daycare and was listening to them play upstairs in their rooms.
Gabriella was a teacher at East High, teaching math and science. Thankfully she had a job that had decent hours to allow her lots of time with her three-year-old daughter, Natalie, and her five-year-old son, Luke. You see…her husband was absent from the home presently.
Troy had become an alcoholic during college and it had only become worse as the years went on. Troy and Gabriella had gotten married their junior year of college. At that point, Troy's problem hadn't even started. He was a social drinker, only drinking in the presence of their friends. But a couple years after they got married, the drinking started to become a problem. They had graduated college and Troy had started a job in a business firm. His job had become very stressful and instead of turning to Gabriella to help him relieve the stress, he had turned to alcohol.
Gabriella had tried to get Troy to quit drinking, but never was able to, until she told him she was pregnant with their first child. Troy couldn't have been happier. Even though he still went out to the bars occasionally, he never came home drunk like he did before.
This continued until Luke was about six months old, and Troy went right back to drinking once again. He never was abusive when he was drunk, just not there to help Gabriella out with the baby. Gabriella was tired of it. This wasn't how she wanted their child to know his father.
About a year later, Gabriella found out she was pregnant again. But the family went through the same process. Troy was thrilled about the new baby, and controlled his drinking for about a year and a half, but then went right back to drinking.
This time, however, Troy was caught drinking and driving. His first offense only put him in jail overnight to sleep it off. The second time, though, Troy spent a couple weeks in there.
Now, Troy had gotten so many DWIs, he'd been sentenced to a year in prison, including some rehab during that time. He was finally getting the help he needed. But still Gabriella was tired of it. This wasn't the life she signed up for. This wasn't how she wanted her kids to grow up, traveling to the prison once a month to see their father for a few hours before having to go home.
This time, Gabriella had made up her mind, though. She had realized that she didn't need Troy to survive with their two kids. She could support the family of three on her own. She had made it for ten months now on only one income. She was going to tell Troy once he got home that it was either stay clean, or she was gone, taking the kids with her.
It was the third Saturday of the month, the day that Gabriella was taking the kids to see Troy. The prison where Troy was had a family day every third Saturday of the month where the families could come in and spend some quality time with the inmates. Gabriella took the kids every month in an effort to help the kids stay close to their father, even though she hated having them see Troy in that environment. It wasn't a memory she wanted the kids to hold onto.
Gabriella arrived at the prison and was directed to the great room where Troy would soon be to meet her. She handed the kids a couple of toys to keep them occupied until Troy came out. Gabriella sat there nervously. She looked forward to these days every month because she still loved Troy with all her heart. However, she dreaded these days because each time she saw him made it harder to think about the possibility of ever having to leave him. She just hoped that this time he'd stay clean. This was the longest he had been sent away and she hoped it had helped. She talked to him each night on the phone and he was always talking about what they had talked about in class that day and how much he had seen those around him improve. He really sounded like a changed man. But she didn't want to get her hopes up.
"Daddy!" she heard Luke exclaim.
When she looked up, she realized Troy had stepped into the room and Luke and Natalie had rushed across the room to give him a hug. Troy had a huge grin on his face as he greeted his kids. She knew they were his pride and joy, she just didn't understand why he didn't try harder to be a better role model for them.
Troy grabbed his kids hands and led them over to where Gabriella was still sitting, glad to have his family with him again. He missed them so much and couldn't wait to be with them again everyday in just two months. As he sat down at the table with the kids on each side of him, Luke began telling him a story about a boy at the daycare. He smiled and nodded at Luke's story, trying to follow along, but he kept his gaze on Gabriella. She had yet to say anything to him and he began to worry something was wrong as she continued to stare at her lap.
When Luke finished his story, Natalie started telling a story about one of the other kids at her daycare. Troy tried to pay attention, but wanted nothing more than to talk to Gabriella and make sure everything was okay. Luke finally asked Troy to go over to the play area the facility had for the kids. Troy looked at Gabriella who finally looked up at him and gave him a small smile, nodding at him for him to go with the kids. Troy nodded back and took both kids over to the play area.
Gabriella stayed where she was and watched Troy playing with the kids from afar. She couldn't help but smile at how happy all three of them looked as Troy chased them around the play area. She had been so nervous when Troy had arrived at their table that she hadn't known what to say to him, so she just allowed him some time to catch up with the kids. That was the most important thing right now. He needed that time to bond with them.
Troy played with the kids for about an hour on the indoor jungle gym before bringing a very tired Natalie back over to Gabriella.
"I think someone is in need of a nap," he said, smiling softly as he handed her over to Gabriella.
"Yeah," she said quietly. "I probably better get the kids home for their naps. I'm glad they got to play with you, though." She lowered her eyes to Luke, who was standing next to Troy. "Luke, grab the toys, please."
Gabriella stood up with Natalie still in her arms, bringing the bag she had brought up to her shoulder.
Troy's eyes widened as he realized she wasn't even giving him a chance to talk to her. He stepped forward quickly and put his hand up to her cheek.
"Hey," he said quietly, turning her face to look at him. "Is everything okay?" Gabriella nodded and started towards the door again. Troy grabbed her free hand, stopping her once again. "Brie…"
Gabriella turned to look at Troy. "We'll see you next month, Troy." Gabriella pulled her arm from Troy's grasp and grabbed Luke's hand, pulling him out the door. Troy watched them leave as he noticed Gabriella fighting back tears, just as he was as well. He couldn't figure out what had went wrong. Gabriella had seemed fine the last time he had seen her, and she'd sounded fine the day before on the phone. But now she wouldn't even talk to him. He was determined to find out tomorrow when he got his call home. Just two more months and things would go back to normal…well, almost normal.
The next evening, Gabriella was cleaning up from dinner when the phone rang. She knew who it was based on the time. Troy called every evening at 6:30 to talk to her and the kids. He was given 30 minutes to talk to them each day.
She hollered for the kids as she walked over to the phone to pick it up. Both children came running into the kitchen and eagerly awaited getting to talk to their father.
"Hello?" she said when she answered the phone.
"Hey, Brie."
"Hi, Troy," Gabriella said, still a little apprehensive around Troy. She felt horrible for how she acted the day before by not talking to him, but she knew she would lose control of her emotions if she opened her mouth. Today wasn't much different. She'd been thinking all day about having to talk to Troy and she'd let her emotions get the best of her at several points throughout the day. The kids had become concerned for her, but she assured them she was alright. Now, Gabriella felt the tears starting to well up in her eyes once again. She closed her eyes and steadied her voice. "Luke wants to talk to you."
"But Brie…"
"Hi, Daddy!" Luke said. Gabriella walked back over to the sink to finish up the dishes from dinner. The kids talked to Troy for about 10 minutes, talking all about their day going to the park and playing with Troy's friend Chad.
"Mommy, Daddy wants to talk to you," Natalie said, bringing Gabriella the phone.
Gabriella took it from her and took a deep breath before putting it to her ear. "Hi, Troy," she said quietly.
"Hi, Brie. I think we really need to talk."
"I think we really do, too."
"Brie, what's going on? Everything seemed fine a couple days ago and now you act like you don't want to talk to me. Have I said something wrong?"
Gabriella could hear the turmoil in Troy's voice as he pleaded with her to tell him what was on her mind. "No, Troy. You didn't say anything wrong."
"Then what's wrong? Please tell me. It's killing me to know that you're hurting so much. The kids said you've been crying all day."
Gabriella let out a sigh of frustration. Of course the kids would tell him that. "I'm fine, Troy. I don't want you worrying about me."
"Brie, of course I'm going to worry about you. Even when you tell me everything is okay, I know it's not. I hate that I'm not there with you, supporting you and the kids. I beat myself up every day for that. It's all my fault that you've had to raise our kids by yourself practically since they were born, but even more so these past ten months. And I hate myself for that. I've made so many mistakes and treated you so wrongly in the time we've been married, and I want to make up for that. I love you so much, Brie, and I know I don't deserve you and how you've done nothing but stick by me. I know I don't have the right to ask this, but all I really want is another chance to prove to you that I am the man you married and that I can actually be a good father and husband to the kids and you."
Gabriella let her tears go. Troy had just voiced everything that she'd been worried about the past couple of days. She knew that everything Troy said sounded so great. It was exactly what she wanted to hear. But she'd heard similar things in the past and nothing had turned out the way she wanted.
"Troy…" Gabriella's voice broke as she tried fighting back the sobs that tried to overtake her body. She took a deep breath and started again. "Troy, you have absolutely no idea how much I've wanted to hear that."
"Brie…Brie, please don't cry. I don't like hearing you cry," Troy pleaded. He hated that he couldn't do anything to ease her pain from where he was. "Brie…what's going on? Is everything ok there? Please, just tell me. You know I'll worry about you more if you don't."
Gabriella sighed, wiping the tears from her eyes. She knew it was true. "Troy, what's going to happen when you come back? When you come home to these kids and a job…and me. What's going to happen when you come back to your stress-filled life."
"So that's what this is all about." It was statement, not a question. Troy finally realized exactly why Gabriella was taking everything so hard. "Brie, baby, I love you so much. And everything that I just told you, I want you to hold me to it. I'm really trying here. This whole experience has been a huge eye-opener and I wish that it hadn't taken something like this to get me to see exactly what I've been missing out on all along, but its been like a big slap across the face. I don't want you to dread me coming home. I would really like it if you were actually looking forward to it. But I know that's a lot to ask. I've done nothing to deserve that. I've been a horrible husband to you and I wouldn't blame you if you kicked me out on the street as soon as I got home."
"Troy, you know that's not going to happen."
Troy nodded, thinking about it for a moment. "Yeah, I know. I just hope that after these two months are over and amidst all these doubts that are running wild, that you still feel the same way about me that I feel about you, or at least a small portion. Because I don't want to lose you. And I'm going to fight everything in order to keep this wonderful life and family that I've been given. God knows I don't deserve it."
"I'm sorry for making you doubt how I feel about you. You know I love you just as much as you love me, if not more. I can't imagine life completely without you, Troy. But if we're being totally honest here…if I had to, I know I could survive…that the kids and I could survive on my one income. Troy, I love you so much and it kills me to even think about leaving you…but I can't handle the life we had before this. I can't handle you drinking all the time and not being here to support the kids. I really could care less about you being here for me anymore. It's not about me anymore. It's about our kids and the fact that they need a father, someone they can actually look up to. Someone they can use as a role model and say 'I want to be just like him when I grow up.' I want them to be able to say that about you, because the guy that I knew before we got married was one hell of a guy. He was the best man that I've ever known. And I want him back. I want our kids to see that man."
Troy smiled, fighting with his emotions. "I want that, too," he said quietly. Silence surrounded the couple for a few moments as they each contemplated everything that had been said and all the emotions that were going through them at the moment. Finally Troy spoke up once again. "Baby, I'm going to have to go. I really hate to. But I'm glad we had this talk. Please tell me you'll at least think about what I've said before you make any decisions about our…your…future."
"Troy, the only decision I'm making right now is the one that says you'll be home…in our home…in two months and I can't wait to have you back."
Troy let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "You have no idea how good that sounds, Brie. I love you so much. Can I call you again tomorrow?"
"You better. I know your kids would be rather disappointed if they didn't get to talk to you."
"The feeling is mutual. But what about you?"
"Eh…I think I'd live."
Troy could hear the teasing in her voice. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Bye, Troy."
Two months couldn't have passed any slower for the family. The kids were anxious to get their dad home and the couple was just as anxious to be in one another's arms. Gabriella was at home on Tuesday, cleaning things up around the house while the kids were over at Chad and Taylor's. It was summer vacation, so Gabriella was trying to catch up on some areas of the house she had let go during the school year when she didn't have as much time. She still had four days to go before she was supposed to go pick Troy up and she wanted the house spotless when he got home.
She was coming down the stairs with a load of laundry when she heard the doorbell ring. Frowning, not knowing who would be visiting, she walked to the door and opened it, shocked at who was standing there.
"Troy?"
"I'm home, baby!" Troy rushed forward and picked up a shocked Gabriella, swinging her around with a huge grin on his face. "I've missed you so much! It's so good to be able to hold you again."
Gabriella pulled back from Troy as he sat her back on the ground. Her eyes still showed surprise, but a smile was slowly making its appearance on her face. "But…how….when….?"
"They moved up my release date a few days. I found out a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to surprise you, so I didn't tell you when I found out."
Gabriella just shook her head, trying to wrap it around what had just happened. "I just can't believe you're here! Not that I'm not thrilled, because I am…I just can't believe it."
"Well believe it, baby, because I'm home to stay and I am not going back." Troy grinned down at Gabriella. When recognition finally became evident in her eyes, she returned his grin. Troy leaned down to kiss her, starting off gently, but slowly deepening the kiss, showing her just how much he had missed her.
"Mmmm." Gabriella leaned into Troy. "I've missed you so much, Troy," she said when they pulled back for some much needed air.
"I've missed you, too, baby," Troy said, tucking a loose curl behind Gabriella's ear. He leaned in for another short, gentle kiss. "But as much as I would love to spend time reacquainting myself with you, I do have two kids around here somewhere that I would love to see." Troy turned around and looked around, not seeing them, before heading towards the stairs.
"Uh…Troy. They're actually not here."
"What? Uh…well, where are they?"
"They're at Chad and Taylor's. Chad got extra tickets so he could take them to the basketball game tonight. They've been looking forward to it for a couple weeks now. They're spending the night there and then I'm supposed to go pick them up in the morning."
"Oh…" he said, sadness evident in his voice. He looked back to Gabriella as a smile crept back on his face. "Well I guess that reunion will just have to wait. I have a wife I need to reunite with tonight." Troy wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Gabriella giggled, turning around to lock the front door, before launching herself into Troy's arms. He carried her up to their bedroom, where they spent the rest of the afternoon becoming familiar once again with each other.
Just as the sun was setting, Gabriella lay in bed next to her husband, admiring him as he slept. She kept telling herself it was going to be different this time. He was a changed man. But there were still those doubts nagging at the back of her mind. She just couldn't get rid of them and probably wouldn't until he proved himself.
Troy finally felt someone staring at him and slowly opened his eyes to find his wife's gaze on him. He shut his eyes again, smiling, as he wound his arms around her waist, pulling her as close to him as he could.
"Why are you awake? I'm absolutely exhausted after that performance." He opened his eyes to look into hers as she continued to stare at him.
"I've just been watching you sleep."
"I know…I could feel it."
She let out a giggle. "Sorry. I've just missed you so much and I've missed being able to just look at you and feel you next to me."
Troy smiled back at her. "I know the feeling."
They laid there in one another's embrace for a few more minutes before Troy's stomach started to growl. Gabriella let out a giggle at the sound.
"Maybe I should pry myself away from you long enough to feed you." She grinned as she reached down beside the bed to grab Troy's discarded shirt and slip it on. She looked back at Troy to see his heated gaze resting on her. She leaned over for one more kiss before slipping from his grasp and venturing downstairs.
About ten minutes later when she hadn't returned, Troy wandered downstairs to find her in the kitchen with her back to him, bent over in the refrigerator. He snuck up behind her, placing his hands on her hips. She jumped at the touch and turned around with wide eyes.
"That's something I'll have to get used to again," she said, grinning.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."
"Don't apologize. It's nice knowing there's someone who can't keep their hands off of me." She grinned at Troy, which was returned to her.
"Well, as long as that someone is me and only me…"
She tilted her head. "There could never be anyone else."
The couple quickly fixed themselves a dinner before returning upstairs to continue getting to know one another again, which is where they stayed the rest of the night.
The next morning, Gabriella awoke to an empty bed. At first she thought it had all been a dream. But as she heard the shower running in the adjoining bathroom, a grin grew on her face and she turned over to snuggle into Troy's pillow, inhaling his scent.
A few minutes later, Troy, covered only in a towel, emerged from the bathroom. He saw Gabriella was awake and walked over to the bed to greet her.
"Good morning, wife." Troy leaned in to kiss her.
"Good morning, husband." Gabriella glanced at the clock beside the bed and noticed it was only 7:15. "You're up early."
"Well, I was in desperate want of a good shower. But I'm also looking forward to seeing our kids again. What time are we picking them up?"
"Uh…any time before ten."
Troy nodded. "Is 8:00 too early?" He grinned at Gabriella.
Gabriella gave him a soft smile, knowing he was eager to see the kids. "No. Just let me take a quick shower and get dressed. I'll be out soon."
Forty minutes later, the couple was walking out the door. Gabriella got in her car, Troy in the passenger seat, since his driver's license was revoked.
"I think Chad should still be there. I doubt he's left for work. And Taylor will definitely be there, so you'll get to surprise both of them as well."
They pulled up to their friends' house, Troy exiting the car quickly and making his way to the door. Gabriella followed behind at a slower pace, quietly laughing at his over-eagerness. He waited impatiently for his friends to answer the door.
Taylor finally answered the door, shocked as she gazed at the man before her.
"Troy? Oh my god! What are you doing here? I didn't think you were coming home for a few more days."
"Well I found out a couple weeks ago they moved up my release date, so I decided to keep it a secret so I could surprise Brie," he said, pulling Gabriella into his side, a big smile still firmly planted on his face.
"Well, you're surprising more than Gabriella, that's for sure!" She leaned in to give Troy a hug. She and Chad hadn't seen him since before he was taken to prison, so it had been over a year since their last visit. "Come on in. Your kids are in the kitchen with mine finishing up breakfast. I'll go get Chad. He's getting ready for work. He'll be thrilled to see you, though!"
Troy and Gabriella wandered on through to the kitchen where the kids were while Taylor ventured on upstairs to find her husband. Upon entering the kitchen, Troy set his sights on his two children, his pride and joy. Natalie was the first to spot him.
"DADDY!" She scrambled out of her seat and ran into his arms as he scooped her up into a big hug.
Luke followed his sister with just as much excitement.
"Oh, I've missed you guys so much!"
"Are you home now, Daddy?" asked Natalie, as she gazed at her father.
"Yes, sweetie, I am. Forever."
Gabriella stood back and observed the reunion with tears in her eyes. Their kids adored their father just as much as she did. She loved seeing so much joy back on their faces after having seen disappointment for so long.
Taylor finally walked into the kitchen, Chad following closely behind. At seeing Troy, a huge grin appeared on his face. "Hoops! Man, how ya been?" Chad gave Troy the usual manly hug and stepped back.
"Definitely better now that I'm home."
Chad nodded and the two continued to catch up for a few minutes before Chad excused himself to go to work. Troy and Gabriella also excused themselves to leave so Troy could spend some time with his children. They decided as a family they would spend some time at the park. Gabriella sat on a bench watching her husband and children chase each other all over the playground. She smiled thinking about how different of a man he was from the one she saw just a little over a year ago.
She just hoped it stayed that way.
A few months passed. Troy finally found a job in a business office. It was a stressful job, but the hours were great and his boss had slightly overlooked his record with drinking, deciding to give him the chance to prove himself.
Troy came home many nights ready to just go to bed and forget everything from his day, but Gabriella finally managed to encourage him to leave it all at work and not think about it at all once he reached home. When he got home, it was family time. Now with two steady incomes, they were able to go out as a family more. Some nights they would go see a movie or just go out to eat.
Gabriella was slowly forgetting that she ever had any doubts that Troy could be the person he said he would be. He was an even better husband now. He was much more devoted and was always there when she or the kids needed him. He dealt with stress a lot better now, too, finding that Gabriella gave one of the best massages he could ask for. She knew that if he asked for one, he had had a very stressful day at work. And she was more than willing to give one if it meant making him feel better.
About five months after Troy had come home, Gabriella began feeling unwell. Troy had doted on her all week while she was sick, staying home from work with her to take care of her. She had taken a few days off of work in hopes that maybe just getting some rest would make her feel better. However, the sickness just continued. The following week, she scheduled an appointment with the doctor one day after school to figure out what was going on. She wasn't able to hold anything down and she was constantly fatigued.
Troy was at work when she went to the doctor, but knew she was scheduled to go. As soon as he got home, he found the kids in the living room watching a movie, but he wanted to know where Gabriella was.
"Where's Mommy?"
"She's in the kitchen," Luke replied. "She's really happy, too."
Hmmm…must be feeling better, Troy thought as he headed towards the kitchen. He found her standing at the stove cooking dinner. He walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and nuzzling his nose in her hair.
"Hey," he said.
"Hi," she replied, turning around in his embrace and putting her arms around his neck, bringing her body closer to his. She leaned up and placed a kiss on his lips, quickly deepening it.
Troy could have stood there all day like that, but was desperately wanting to know what Gabriella found out at the doctor. He pulled back and looked at his wife, a big smile on her face.
"Good day?"
"The best," she said, her smile getting bigger, if possible.
He cocked his head to the side, studying her. "You know…usually people who go see the doctor don't have this type of reaction. Usually that puts a damper on their day."
Gabriella giggled. "Yeah…but I got some good news. There's nothing wrong with me."
Troy frowned. "Well that's great, baby, but obviously something was wrong. Otherwise you wouldn't have been so sick this past week."
"True…but still nothing is wrong with me. Everything's okay. I'm good to go. I may still have some sickness for a while, but it's nothing to be concerned about."
Troy stood there for a few moments, completely confused. If his wife didn't have anything wrong with her then why would she continue to be sick?
Seeing the frown and confusion on her husband's face, Gabriella smiled and took one of Troy's arms from around her and placed his hand on her stomach. "I'm completely fine, Troy. I couldn't be any better."
She watched as realization finally registered on his face. "You….we….you're pregnant?" he whispered.
Gabriella nodded, her smile still firmly intact. "We're going to have another baby, Troy," she whispered back, keeping the moment intimate between the couple.
Troy let everything register in his mind before grabbing Gabriella and swinging her around, her giggle ringing in his ears. "We're going to have a baby!"
He sat her down gently before dipping his head and capturing her lips in a kiss.
Gabriella eventually pulled back from Troy and looked at him. "So you're happy, I guess?"
"Happy? No. I'm ecstatic! I've actually been thinking about talking to you about having another baby, but I wasn't sure if you wanted anymore kids."
Gabriella laughed. "Well, so much for talking about it. It's happening. But I'm okay with it, as long as I have you by my side."
Troy pulled Gabriella close as he buried his face in her curls. "I'll always be right here. I'm not going anywhere…not if I can help it."
Gabriella smiled at her husband. She couldn't have asked for a better husband. Over the five months that Troy had been home, he hadn't once drank any alcohol. He had proved to Gabriella that he was serious this time. Gabriella had even quit drinking a glass of wine with her dinner if they went out. Troy had completely removed the temptation from his life and couldn't have been happier because of it. He was completely involved in his children's lives. Luke had started Kindergarten and Troy had been there for his first day, as well as every major event that happened in his class. Natalie was still going to the daycare. Troy made sure he had a father/daughter day every time after he did something special with Luke. He couldn't believe how blessed he was with his family and he couldn't imagine ever doing something stupid with his life again to mess it all up.
Troy Bolton definitely wouldn't make the same mistake twice.
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