Disclaimer: I do not own anything.
More Than a Teacher
Gabriella Montez was sitting in her classroom after school, contemplating whether to call the parents of one of her students or not. She was a 1st grade teacher at East Elementary. She loved her job, but recently she had been having lots of problems with one of her new students. It seemed like the more comfortable the student got with those around her, the more she acted out. She wanted to take care of the problem before it got too bad. Not only that, but this student had also not been to school in a few days and Gabriella was beginning to worry about her, wondering if there was something going on at home that was hindering her progress at school.
Gabriella looked up the number of the student's parents and called them, scheduling a meeting for the next day after school.
The next day when school had let out for the day, Gabriella was sitting at her desk getting everything ready for the meeting that she would need. She heard a knock on her door. She looked up to see a man, who she could only assume was the student's father.
"Can I come in?" he asked.
Gabriella couldn't help but notice the man's mesmerizing eyes, but shook that thought from her head as she responded. "Of course. Please, come sit down," she said, gesturing to a table at the side of the room.
Before they sat down, he extended his hand to her. "Thank you. I'm Troy Bolton."
Gabriella took his hand and shook it. "Gabriella Montez. Are we still waiting on your wife?"
"Oh…uh…no. It's just me," he said quietly.
"Oh…ok. Sorry," Gabriella said, feeling bad for making things uncomfortable.
Troy realized thing had grown uncomfortable rather quickly and tried to amend that. "No, it's fine," he said quickly. "I'm all she's got now, except for her grandparents. Her mother died three years ago. She had cancer."
Gabriella was shocked. "Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry to hear that."
Troy nodded slowly, but tried to get back to the reason he was there. "So what did you need to talk to me about?
"Well, I'm concerned about Hannah. She acts out in class, always disrupting the lessons. And she doesn't do her work. I feel horrible for always taking away recess or something to make her do her work. I know she needs that time to work out any excess energy, but I don't know what else to do to get her to do her work."
Troy frowned. "That's not like her at all. She's always been one of the better students in her classes."
"Well I'm also concerned because she hasn't been here at all this week. Is she doing ok? Has she been sick?"
Troy let out a sigh. "Actually she hasn't wanted to come. She says she feels fine and she seems to feel ok, but she just doesn't want to come to school. I don't know why. But she cries until I finally give in. I've tried everything. I really need to get her back in school, but I don't want her to be miserable. Again, this behavior is not like her at all. She's always enjoyed school and never complained about going. Maybe these behaviors are linked. Is there something going on within the classroom that you have seen that might have caused her to act out?"
Gabriella shook her head. "No. Not that I've seen. She's very quiet, but she seems to get along with everyone." Gabriella paused for a moment to think. "What if you came in one day next week and sat in on the class to see how she does? Then you can see how the class is run. If you see something that might be causing this behavior that I'm not seeing, you can give me your opinion. I want Hannah to enjoy coming to school, but if I'm doing something that would cause her to feel uncomfortable, I want to take care of the problem."
Troy nodded. "Thanks, I appreciate that. Would Tuesday work for you?"
"Tuesday would be great."
Troy left and Gabriella finished up with her work for the day before going home.
On Tuesday, Gabriella waited in her classroom for her students to arrive. Troy and Hannah were the first ones to arrive. Hannah came in and put her stuff away, all the while showing Troy where everything was in the room. When class started, Troy situated himself at a table in the back of the room and watched the students interact with his daughter's teacher.
He very much enjoyed being in the classroom. And Hannah seemed to be doing better also. Ms. Montez made the learning fun for the students, acting like a kid herself most of the time. She's beautiful when she smiles, Troy thought. What am I saying? She's my daughter's teacher…I can't think about her like that.
When the students were cleaning up for lunch, Gabriella took a moment to talk to Troy.
"Well…what do you think?" she asked cautiously, hoping there wasn't anything major.
Troy shrugged. "She seems to be doing fine."
Gabriella nodded. "Yeah, I noticed that, too. Maybe she just feels more comfortable when you are in the room."
"That could be it. I don't know." Troy paused. "I really liked how you interacted with the kids though. It looks fun, and the kids seem to really enjoy it."
Gabriella smiled. "Well I've been doing this for seven years and I love every minute of it. I want every student to have the best possible experience while here and I want to enjoy it with them."
"I can definitely tell this classroom is just a big room of fun." Troy paused to look around the room, noticing the students were lined up at the door, ready for lunch. "Well, I need to go so I can get to work. But if Hannah gives you any more problems, just give me a call. I can't see why she wouldn't want to be here."
"Thanks, Mr. Bolton."
Troy smiled. "Please, call me Troy, Ms. Montez."
"Well I insist you call me Gabriella," she responded.
"Thank you for inviting me into your classroom, Gabriella. I'm sure we'll see each other again soon." Troy began to walk off but stopped when Gabriella began to speak again.
"Actually, we have a field trip coming up that we could use some chaperones for if you would be willing to come along."
"I don't know…" Troy said unsurely.
Gabriella smiled. "Oh come on…it would be fun. Plus, I'm sure Hannah would love it if you came along."
Troy thought about it for a moment, unsure if he wanted to spend an entire day with a group of first graders. But he also knew Gabriella was right. "Ok, I'll do it for Hannah."
Gabriella's smile brightened. "Thank you, Troy. I really appreciate the help. But I'm sure Hannah will be thrilled."
Troy left the classroom, and couldn't help but feel a little excited about the upcoming field trip…not because he'd be spending the day with a bunch of kids, but because he would get to see Gabriella's beautiful face again.
As the weeks went on, Troy began making regular visits to see Gabriella. He had found that he loved her company, so he made it a habit to see her once a week with the excuse that he just wanted to make sure Hannah was doing well in class.
Gabriella was sitting at home one evening when she realized just how much she had actually seen Troy recently. He had been stopping by her classroom once a week at least for the past several weeks. Then on the day of the field trip, his group had followed hers around all day. I really do like his company. And he's a very handsome man. Gabriella's eyes widened at that thought. What am I saying?! I can't think like that! He's my student's father.
Gabriella was broken out of her thoughts by the sound of her phone ringing.
"Hello?" she answered.
"Gabriella, it's Troy."
Well speaking of…
"Hi, Troy. What can I do for you?"
"Well, actually, it's not me. It's Hannah."
Gabriella could hear the anxiousness in his voice. "Is she alright? What's going on?" she asked, concerned for her student, but also for the daughter of someone she now called her friend.
"Sort of. We've brought her to the hospital. She has appendicitis."
"Oh my gosh! Have they already taken her into surgery?" Gabriella asked, worried about Hannah.
"No," Troy responded. He let out a sigh. "They're getting ready to. I just wanted you to know what was going on and was wondering if you could have her homework ready for me to pick up tomorrow after school."
"Yeah, I can do that. I hope she gets better soon. How long will she be out of school?"
"Probably a couple of weeks. I want to make sure she has healed some before sending her back to school."
"Definitely. Well, I'll be sure to keep her caught up on the work we do in class. I'll have it ready so you can come by and pick it up."
"Thanks, Gabriella. I really appreciate this."
Gabriella could hear the relief in his voice. "No problem. Do you need anything?"
"I don't think so. My parents are sitting here with me, so I should be fine. Thanks again, though."
Gabriella had gotten Hannah's work ready for Troy the next day. A few days later when Troy hadn't been back to pick up any more work for Hannah, Gabriella decided to take it to Hannah instead so she could see her and explain what they had been learning in class.
She walked up to Troy's house and rang the doorbell. A few seconds later, Troy opened the door.
"Gabriella? What are you doing here?" Troy asked, surprised to find her at the door.
"Well, it's been a few days since you have been by to pick up Hannah's work, so I thought I would bring it by. I don't want her to get behind."
"Oh, thanks. I've just been so busy trying to make sure she's okay and stay caught up on my work that I haven't had time to stop by." Troy opened the door farther and stepped aside. "Come in."
Gabriella walked in and stopped in the living room. "Follow me," Troy said. "I'll show you to her room. I'm sure she will be excited to see you."
Gabriella followed troy through his house and upstairs to Hannah's room. As soon as Gabriella began talking with Hannah, Troy left the room so Hannah could get caught up on her lessons.
Gabriella stayed until she made sure Hannah understood all the lessons she had missed. She finished her homework, too, with the help of Gabriella. By the time Gabriella left Hannah's room, Hannah had fallen asleep. Gabriella tiptoed out of the room and down the stairs where she saw Troy sitting on the couch looking through some files.
Troy heard Gabriella walk in and stood up, setting his work aside. Gabriella was the first to speak up. "She's asleep, but she got all of her work done."
Troy nodded. "That's great. She's been really tired lately. I'm surprised she lasted that long." There was a pause in conversation momentarily as both tried to figure out what to say. Troy spoke up once again. "That's for coming by. I know you have a lot to do without having to worry about personally bringing homework to your absent students. I really appreciate you doing this for her."
"It was no problem. Plus, this is a special circumstance. I definitely don't want her to be two weeks behind when she comes back, and I know you have a lot on your plate trying to take care of her, while being a single dad and still try to work full-time."
Troy nodded. "It's been tough, but we get by." Gabriella smiled. "Do you want a cup of coffee or something?"
Gabriella thought about it for a moment. "I don't want to impose on you. It looked like you were hard at work when I came down. I probably better go."
Troy was disappointed. "I could use a break," he said hopefully.
Gabriella smiled. "Okay, coffee would be great."
Gabriella walked with Troy to the kitchen and watched him pour two cups of coffee, offering her cream and sugar, before they walked back to the couch and sat down. The two sat and talked for a long time about different things, mainly Hannah, which eventually led to talking about Hannah's mom.
"She sounds like she was a great lady."
"She was," Troy said quietly. "I miss her every day, but I know that she's not sick anymore and she's not suffering. So I'm glad for that."
"Well, you've done an excellent job raising Hannah."
"Thanks," Troy smiled. "But she needs a mother."
Gabriella tilted her head as she looked at Troy. "You're right. Maybe at some point she's going to need a woman who can be a motherly figure to her, someone she can look to for advice with girl problems and things like that. But don't rush into anything. She's still struggling."
Troy frowned. "How can you tell?"
"She told me," Gabriella said simply. When Troy didn't respond, Gabriella elaborated. "She misses her so much. That's why she was struggling at school She said something about how I reminded her of her mom and that she thought I was trying to replace her mom somehow."
"Oh…wow," Troy said. "She's never told me that before."
Gabriella nodded. "Just give her time. I'm sure things will get better and easier for both of you."
A silence came over the room and Gabriella stood up. "I better go. But I'll continue to come by and help Hannah if that's alright."
"Yes," Troy said quickly. "That would be great…I know Hannah would love that," he said to cover his own excitement of seeing Gabriella again.
A few days later, Gabriella stopped by again to see Hannah. She didn't have to work with Hannah as long this time and was soon back downstairs, leaving Hannah to rest.
Troy was in the kitchen when Gabriella got downstairs. She went to let him know she was leaving. Troy didn't hear her walk in, so when she began talking he jumped.
"Hannah is resting, and she finished her work quickly. So I'll see you later."
Troy whipped around to look at her, trying to figure out a reason for her to stay. "Would you like to stay for dinner?" he quickly asked.
Gabriella hesitated. "I don't know, Troy. I don't want to impose on you guys. Plus, I have some work I need to get done."
Troy's shoulders sagged slightly. "You wouldn't be imposing," he said hopefully. "Plus, if you don't stay, it's just going to be me down here. Hannah will be asleep for a while more than likely."
"Well, I guess I could stay for a little while."
"Great," Troy smiled at Gabriella.
The two ate dinner and talked all the while. When they finished, Gabriella helped Troy clean up, then they went to the living room and talked. They had been sitting there, deep in conversation, for a while when Gabriella looked at her watch.
"Oh goodness, I need to be going. I still have to get some stuff ready for tomorrow's lessons."
"Oh…okay," Troy said. He walked Gabriella to the door. "Thanks for staying. I had a great time with you. I don't think I've had a dinner that was that much fun in a long time."
"I had fun, too. Thanks for inviting me to stay. Dinner was great." Gabriella looked up and Troy locked his eyes on hers before slowly leaning in. Before Gabriella knew what was happening, Troy was kissing her.
Troy pulled back and looked at her while rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."
"I've got to go," Gabriella said quickly. She opened the door and shut it swiftly behind her. What was that? Why did he kiss me? Why did I have to like it? This is so wrong! I shouldn't like the father of one of my students!
Gabriella avoided the house for a few days, but couldn't stay away too long without putting Hannah's education at risk. She didn't want her to be punished through all this. She took the work that Hannah had missed and went to get her caught up. When she arrived, she couldn't help but feel the tension and awkwardness between her and Troy. She quickly went upstairs to see Hannah. When she was finished, she went back downstairs and headed towards the door, telling Troy "bye" on her way through the living room. She didn't want to linger because she knew any conversation with Troy would be awkward at this point. However, her plan was ruined when Troy decided to follow her to the door.
"Gabriella." Gabriella turned around but wouldn't look Troy in the eye. Troy put his finger on Gabriella's chin and moved it up so she was looking at him. "I…I'm sorry about the other night. I don't know what happened." Troy paused for a moment. He looked back and forth between Gabriella's eyes, searching for anything to relieve the fear he felt of possibly having ruined the friendship they had built up. "I can't lie to you, though. I really enjoyed that kiss."
Gabriella blushed and looked away quickly before looking back at Troy. "I did, too," she responded quietly.
Troy grinned and Gabriella felt herself relaxing, the tension and awkwardness slowly diminishing. "I really like you, Gabriella. Why do you think I kept coming to see you every week?"
Gabriella frowned. "I thought you were concerned about Hannah."
"Well…I was…especially at first. But then I realized I enjoyed your company and it got to the point where I couldn't wait until I saw you again." Troy smiled. "And I still feel that way…even more. I have to admit that these past few days I've been beating myself up because I thought I had screwed everything up. I was so afraid that things would continue to be awkward between us and that I'd never get the chance to even have a friendship with you again."
Gabriella smiled and took a deep breath. "I enjoy your company, too, Troy. But nothing can happen beyond that. It just wouldn't be right for me to get involved with the father of one of my students."
Troy felt defeated once again, but then thought of something. "Yeah, I understand that…but she will only be your student for about another month. And then there is summer break, and she won't ever be your student again." Troy grabbed Gabriella's hand in his and held it for a moment, determined to convince her to give them a chance. "Gabriella, I have to be completely honest with you. I haven't felt about a person the way I feel about you since my wife died. I honestly didn't know if I ever could feel that way about someone again. But then you walked into my life, and I know I don't' want you to walk out of it. I think I'm falling in love with you, Gabriella."
Gabriella had tears come to her eyes as she looked up into Troy's eyes. She reached up and put her arms around his neck, bringing him into an embrace. Troy put his arms around her waist and held her tight. "I think I'm falling in love with you, too," she whispered in his ear before pulling back and looking at him. "But what about Hannah?"
Troy smiled. "I need to talk to her about it. I know she really likes you, but obviously this would be a huge change for her."
Gabriella nodded. "Talk to her, Troy. She's the most important person in your life right now. And you're the most important in hers. Any changes you make could be dangerous to her. You need to make sure she's ready for any changes because she is still dealing with the loss of her mother."
"I'll definitely talk to her, but please tell me you won't rule out the possibility of us."
Gabriella nodded. "Don't worry. It will be on my mind. But even if she is okay with this, we need to wait at least another month. We need to wait until after school is out, that way we don't complicate things with Hannah. I don't want to make things difficult for her."
Troy agreed. "I think I can handle that. But will I still get to see you?"
"Of course. I am, after all, your daughter's teacher, so you better still come around to check up on how she's doing." The two laughed.
About a week later, Troy was sitting the table eating dinner with Hannah. She had gone back to school a couple days before that. "So, Hannah, how do you like being back at school?"
"I like seeing my friends again. I'm so tired when I get home, though."
Troy nodded. "Hey, Hannah? I wanted to talk to you about something."
Hannah continued to eat as she looked at her dad. "What did you want to talk about, Dad?"
"What do you think about Ms. Montez?"
Hannah frowned. "I like her, you know that. Why?"
"Well..." Troy sat back and ran his fingers through his hair, not quite sure how to talk to his daughter about this. "Hannah, I really like her. And I don't mean that she's a good person. I mean that I like her a lot. What would you think about seeing her a lot more after school is over?"
"Dad, I'm not stupid. You want to take her out on a date?"
Troy was shocked, but chuckled. "Yeah, I do, Hannah. But only if you're okay with it."
Hannah put her fork down and smiled. "I'm okay with it."
"Okay…great," Troy smiled. "Well you don't have to worry about anything until after school is out for the summer."
A month later on the last day of school, Troy showed up to pick up Hannah. When he walked into the classroom, Gabriella's face lit up at the sight of him. She couldn't wait to be able to date him, to actually let her feelings show. The past month had been torture for her, knowing she had to act only as a friend to him. But she also knew that better days were coming when they could be more and they could both act on their feelings. She loved the feeling of know that Troy felt the same way about her.
Troy waited around until the last student, except Hannah, had left. Then he walked over to Gabriella.
"So…school's out," Troy said with a grin.
"Yeah…what a relief! I'm going to miss all those kids, though."
Troy gave Gabriella a smirk, then grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into him. He looked into her eyes. "You know that's not what I meant," he said quietly.
Gabriella could hear the teasing in his voice. "I know. But still…it's a relief school is out." Gabriella lowered her voice to a whisper. "I don't know how much longer I would last hiding these feelings I have for you."
Troy closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers. "I know exactly how you feel." He opened his eyes and looked into hers. "So…dinner Friday night? My place with Hannah?"
"I wouldn't miss it for the world."
Friday night came. Troy and Gabriella enjoyed their time together, involving Hannah in as much of it as possible. It was important to Gabriella that Hannah felt like she was as much a part of that relationship as she and Troy were. She never wanted her to feel left out or like she wasn't important. Troy couldn't have been happier about that. He saw the way Gabriella was with Hannah and it made him fall more in love with her than he ever thought possible. He had been concerned that Hannah would find it weird that her teacher was there with them, but Hannah had quickly adapted, struggling at first with what to call her, but eventually settling into calling her "Gabi" rather than "Ms. Montez".
After Hannah had gone to bed, Gabriella stayed for a while so she could spend some quality time with just Troy, something that she hadn't had the opportunity to do much. They sat on the couch, snuggled together, and talked.
"Are you comfortable?" she heard Troy ask.
Gabriella nodded. "Very."
Troy smiled and pulled Gabriella closer to his side, if that was even possible. "I love you," he whispered in her ear.
Gabriella looked over at Troy in the dim light of the room and smiled at him. They had both confessed to one another how they felt, telling each other they were falling for one another. But they hadn't used those special three words yet, and hearing them brought tingles to Gabriella's spine.
"I love you, too," she replied.
Troy smiled. "I never thought I would feel this way again." Troy chuckled. "It just amazes me how things have progressed for us. I never thought moving here would provide me and Hannah with so much happiness. When we first moved here, she seemed so unhappy. And I'll admit, I was struggling as well with trying to get settled in at work and balancing everything as a single dad. But then I met you, and it's like my whole world got flipped upside down in a good way. I developed a new friend, but you also taught me so many things. You gave me someone to talk to, but also helped me see areas where I may have been pushing Hannah too much, especially with the whole topic of me dating someone. After meeting you, I couldn't imagine having moved anywhere else."
Gabriella smiled back at Troy before responding. "I feel the same way. You've definitely flipped my world upside down in a good way as well. I've always been so focused on my career that I've never taken time for a personal life. So when you showed up and we started becoming friends, you helped me see that it's okay to have fun and focus on something that's not school-related for once. I'll be honest, I was nervous at first because I was so afraid of getting wrapped up in something that would become a huge distraction. But I can do both. I see that now. I need to do both. I love my job, but it can't be everything to me. Plus, I'm getting to a point in my life where I need to start thinking about achieving those dreams I've had for myself outside of my career."
"What dreams are those?" Troy asked quietly.
Gabriella looked into Troy's eyes. "Getting married and having children. Since I was a little girl, I've always dreamed of my wedding day and what it would be like to share my life with someone. I want what my parents had before my father passed away. They had a love like no other. One that would have lasted a lifetime if they'd been given the chance." Gabriella paused for a moment and smiled softly, thinking about the relationship her parents had. "I used to watch them all the time. They weren't afraid to show a little affection to one another in front of people. My dad would come home from work and the first thing he would do is grab my mom and kiss her. They would always hold hands. And I remember always hearing him telling her how much he loved her. I don't know if it's possible to find something like that. I know it's rare. But if it's out there, I want to find it."
Troy smiled softly at Gabriella and kissed the side of her head. The two sat in silence for a while, deep in thought. Gabriella continued to think about her parents. Troy sat there thinking about what Gabriella had said. Love like that was rare. But he knew he wanted to be the person to give it to Gabriella, to help her achieve her dreams. He knew they were just starting their relationship, but he also knew that even at this point, he couldn't imagine himself with anyone else.
Over the next several months, Troy and Gabriella's relationship blossomed into something beautiful. Gabriella was quickly coming to realize that Troy was everything she had ever dreamed of. He constantly told her how much he loved her and always showed her in different ways. She was finding that they were developing a relationship like she'd seen with her parents. But she was afraid of it slipping away.
Hannah had quickly adapted to the relationship as well. Troy and Gabriella included her on most things, never wanting her to feel left out. But they also enjoyed their alone time, something Hannah seemed to understand.
Troy and Gabriella decided to spend Christmas Eve together. Both of them had plans with their respective families the following day, so they wanted to make sure they had quality time to celebrate together, just the three of them. They had all exchanged gifts before sitting in front of the fireplace drinking hot chocolate. Gabriella had been sitting between Troy's legs, leaning on him while he rested his back against the couch. They both looked over and saw that Hannah was dozing off in the chair. Troy picked her up and took her to her room to tuck her into bed.
When he came back down, Troy quietly walked into the room and rested himself against the doorway, watching Gabriella and smiling to himself. She was beautiful and she was his. He couldn't ask for more. In the seven months they had been together, Troy had been happier than he ever thought possible.
Gabriella finally felt someone's presence and turned around to find Troy staring at her with a smile on his face. "Hey, Handsome, why don't you come over here and sit with me?"
Troy made his way over to Gabriella, but instead of sitting down with her, he came to stand in front of her. "I have one more Christmas present for you. It's kinda for both of us."
Gabriella frowned, confused. "Troy, you've already given me enough," she said.
Troy shook his head. "No, I haven't. This present is very special." Gabriella watched Troy closely as he knelt down on one knee in front of her. When he did that, her eyes widened as she saw him reach into his pocket and pull out a velvet box.
"Gabriella Anne Montez, I love you to the bottom of my heart. I honestly never thought I could love someone this much again, but you proved me wrong. Each day that I have spent with you, my love has grown more and more. You would make me so happy if you would become my wife and Hannah's mom. Will you marry me?"
Gabriella had tears come to her eyes. "Are you sure?" she asked. Troy frowned. "I mean…is Hannah okay with this?"
Troy smiled, loving how Gabriella put Hannah first. "She's definitely okay with this. She even helped me pick out the ring. This one was her favorite."
Gabriella smiled and looked down at the ring. "It's beautiful."
"So are you going to give me an answer?" Troy teased, though he was getting more nervous the longer it took her to answer his question.
Gabriella giggled. "I would love to marry you, Troy."
Troy's smile lit up the room as he breathed a sigh of relief. He took the ring from the box and slid it on her finger. "I love you, so much."
"I love you, too." The two leaned in a shared a gentle kiss. Gabriella pulled back and looked at the ring once again. "I'll have to let Hannah know she did a good job," Gabriella smiled. "It really is beautiful."
"Nothing compares to you, though."
Gabriella smiled, but turned her head as she felt her cheeks heat up from her blush. Troy could be corny sometimes, but that was one of the things she loved about him. Even though he was corny, he made her feel like the most special woman in the world. To him, she had always been beautiful. Most men she had dated in the past always called her hot, but with Troy, she was always beautiful.
The couple basked in their happiness for a while before Gabriella decided she needed to head home and get some rest before heading to her family dinner the next day.
The following evening, Gabriella came home from her mom's. It had been a long, but good day. She enjoyed spending time with her family. She had told them all the good news. Most of them had met Troy and couldn't have been happier for her. There were several who were disappointed that he wasn't there with her to share in the announcement, but she quickly informed them he was with his family, where he needed to be. The though crossed her mind that the following year, they would be celebrating with each other's families together and that thought alone put a smile on her face.
Gabriella hadn't been in her house long when she heard her phone ring. She crossed the room to where she had left it next to her purse and picked it up, seeing Troy's name flashing on the screen. She grinned.
"Merry Christmas!" she answered.
"Merry Christmas!" she heard as a reply. But it wasn't Troy's voice that responded. Instead, it was Hannah's.
"Hey, Hannah! Did you have a good day?"
"Yeah…it was the best! I got lots of presents. You'll have to come see them."
"Okay, I will definitely do that," she said, smiling.
"Could you come over now?"
Gabriella giggled. "Sure. Is your dad okay with that?"
"Well duh!" Hannah responded. Gabriella laughed again. "He loves it when you come over. Plus, I forgot to give you your other present last night."
Gabriella frowned. "Oh? Are you sure? I think I got everything I could ever want."
"No…there was one more thing," Hannah said.
"Ok…" Gabriella said unsurely. "I'll be over in a few minutes."
Gabriella drove to Troy and Hannah's, wondering what the other gift could be. She couldn't imagine what Hannah would have forgotten. She and Troy had given Gabriella plenty already.
Gabriella arrived at Troy's and rang the doorbell. Seconds later, Hannah was heard running towards the door before it was jerked open. Gabriella looked down to find a grinning Hannah motioning for her to come in.
Gabriella looked around, but didn't see Troy anywhere. "Where's your dad?"
"He's upstairs."
"Oh…okay…" Gabriella frowned.
"Come sit on the couch." Hannah grabbed Gabriella's hand and led her to the couch to sit. Hannah began talking. "So last night I was going to wait until after my dad proposed, but I fell asleep too soon."
"Okay…"
"Well, your present isn't really something you can see or touch…it's actually a question. And it will only be a present if you say 'yes'."
Gabriella frowned. She was confused. "Okay…ask away."
"Gabi, would you move in with my dad and me?"
Gabriella was shocked. She hadn't expected that. "Uh…Hannah…I don't know. I mean…that's a big thing to do."
"I know…but my dad and I talked about it. We both want to see you more. Plus, you're getting married, so you're going to have to live with us at some point anyway."
Gabriella laughed. "You're right. Your dad agreed to this also?"
"I did. I think it's a wonderful idea, but only as long as you do, too." Gabriella turned around when she heard Troy's voice. He was standing there smiling at her, waiting patiently for her answer.
Gabriela turned back around to look at Hannah. She leaned over and whispered in Hannah's ear. "When can I move in?"
Hannah whispered back, "What about tomorrow?"
Gabriella nodded and Hannah hugged her. Gabriella got up and began walking toward the door. Troy was confused and followed her.
"Where are you going?" he asked, slight panic in his voice. He knew she had agreed to marry him, but he was still afraid of losing her, of pushing her into too much all at once.
"Home…" she said simply.
Troy frowned. "Uh…okay." He stood there and fiddled nervously with his hands.
Gabriella smiled at his nervousness. "I have some packing I have to get done."
Troy looked up. "You mean you're going to move in with us?"
Gabriella nodded. "Yes…unless you've changed your mind already?"
"No!" Troy said hastily. "I mean…no, I want you here. We both want you here."
Gabriella smirked. "Well I guess I will see you tomorrow then." She leaned up and kissed Troy, then turned and walked out the door, leaving a very happy Troy standing there watching her with a stupid grin on his face.
The next couple of days were spent moving Gabriella into Troy and Hannah's house. The first night that Gabriella lived there, she was lying in bed with Troy's arms around her, just staring at him as he was asleep. She couldn't sleep, so she decided to just watch him sleep.
"Would you stop staring at me?"
Gabriella jumped slightly, not realizing he was actually awake. She giggled. "I thought you were asleep."
"No, but I'm trying. However, it's kinda hard to relax when someone is constantly looking at you." He opened his eyes to look at her and smiled, pulling her closer to him. "Why aren't you asleep?"
"I can't sleep. I don't know why. I guess I'm just not tired."
Troy frowned. "How can you not be after all that we did today trying to get you moved in here?"
"I don't know. I guess it's just a different place, different bed. Everything just feels different. Plus I guess I'm just not used to sharing a bed with anyone."
Troy retracted his arms from around Gabriella as he moved a little farther away. "Sorry," he said quietly.
Gabriella closed the distance between them that had been created and put her arms around Troy, pulling him back into her. "No. I didn't say I didn't like it. I just said I'm not used to it. But I can definitely get used to it. You make me feel safe and loved in your arms."
Troy smiled. "Well you have nothing to worry about as long as you're with me. I'll always protect you. I love you," Troy said, leaning in to kiss Gabriella. The kiss became heated as Troy moved to hover over Gabriella. A few minutes later, Troy pulled back slowly, leaning his forehead against Gabriella's, trying to catch his breath. "We need to sleep."
Gabriella smirked up at him. "I'm not sure I can sleep at all now," she said, still trying to regulate her breaths.
Troy chuckled and leaned down to kiss her one more time. "As badly as I would love that, I know I don't have the energy tonight."
Gabriella smiled at him and agreed as he moved to lay next to her, bringing her close to him as she snuggled into his chest. He began rubbing her back as they closed their eyes, trying to relax. A few minutes later, Troy heard Gabriella's even breaths and knew she had fallen asleep. He snuggled in closer to her. He loved having Gabriella near him. He loved being able to hold her in his arms as he watched her sleep peacefully. And he knew he was going to love getting to wake up next to her the following morning.
After lying there thinking for a few more minutes, Troy finally drifted off to sleep, thoughts of the woman next to him filling his head.
1 Year Later:
Troy and Gabriella got married six months after he proposed to her. They waited until she was out of school for the summer. They didn't want to confuse any of her students with a name change. But they also wanted her to have the time off around the wedding to make final preparations and go on a honeymoon.
Hannah had quickly settled into having a mother figure around again. She had even begun calling Gabriella "mom", something that had surprised her at first, but had warmed her heart. Gabriella was nervous at first because she wasn't sure how Troy would respond to it. She was afraid he'd be hurt. She never wanted him to think that she was trying to replace Hannah's mom. But it turned out that she had nothing to worry about. Troy was shocked at first, just like Gabriella was. But he couldn't have been happier to know that Hannah thought that much of Gabriella.
Now it was Christmastime once again. The Boltons had decided to have family dinner with Gabriella's family on Christmas Eve, then dinner with Troy's family on Christmas night. On Christmas morning, the Bolton family was sitting around the tree opening gifts. Gabriella had planned to hopefully give Troy and Hannah a Christmas present they would all enjoy. She had found out a couple weeks ago that she was two months pregnant. She had decided to wait until Christmas to tell, as she thought that would be the perfect present.
When the last gift had been opened, Gabriella spoke up. "I have one more present for you both."
Troy and Hannah both looked around but didn't see any more presents. "Where is it?" Hannah asked.
"Well…you can't have it yet. But I will let you know what it is," Gabriella smiled.
Troy looked at Gabriella, confused. "When can we have it?"
"Not until July."
Troy was really confused now. "Okay…why do we have to wait so long?"
"Well…it's umm…still in the process of being made," she said.
Hannah frowned. "What takes so long to be made?"
When Gabriella realized that Troy and Hannah didn't get what she was trying to say, she decided to just tell them.
"Hannah, what would you think about being a big sister?"
Hannah frowned again, confused by why her mom would ask her that question. "I think it would be cool. Why?"
Troy looked at Gabriella, confused at first, and then he realized what she was trying to tell them. "You-you're pregnant?"
Gabriella looked at him and nodded.
"Oh my gosh! I'm going to be a father again! Hannah, you're going to be a big sister!" Troy had a huge grin on his face as he picked up Hannah and twirled her around, putting her back down before grabbing Gabriella and doing the same to her.
Gabriella giggled as Troy twirled her around. He sat her back on the floor and leaned down to kiss her. "You've just made me so much happier than I ever thought was possible!"
"I'm so glad you're happy. I was actually nervous to tell you, but excited at the same time," Gabriella said quietly.
"Nervous? Why would you be nervous? I am so happy that you are going to have a baby…our baby. How long have you known?"
"About two weeks," she said. "I knew that we had talked about trying for a baby, but we hadn't really talked about the timing."
Troy smiled then looked over at Hannah who hadn't said anything since being told. "Hannah…honey, are you okay? What do you think about all of this?"
Hannah looked deep in thought, and then looked up at her parents, first at Gabriella, then at Troy. A smile broke out on her face. "Can I help name the baby?"
Troy and Gabriella smiled, glad she was okay with it. Gabriella spoke up first. "Of course…I want you to help me every step of the way. You're going to be a great big sister." Gabriella walked over and sat beside Hannah, putting her arm around her and hugging her.
Troy stood there and looked at his wife and daughter, truly appreciating his family…his growing family. How did I get so lucky? I have an incredible daughter, another baby on the way, and the most beautiful, amazing wife that I could ever ask for. A wife who I'm so thankful became more than a teacher to my daughter…
So I rewrote this story. Not much has changed. The major part of the plot line stayed the same, but I added in more dialogue and filled in a few of the gaps that had been left in the story when I wrote it the first time around. Leave me a review and let me know what you think!