Yes! Finally I have this chapter done! For those who were waiting for this story, I wasn't slacking off. I've been working on this for AGES and I think I finally made it decent enough to put here. Warning to the fans of my other stories: This story is rated T for cursing, only a few minor things but all the same.

Okay. So here is The Heartbreak Club. Yay! (does a dorky dance) Alright, now this chapter is testing the water. Please read and review.

Disclaimer: I won HSM from its owner by beating him in a pig race. Yeahh. And I also bought the moon. Haha, pig racing skills can get you far in life...

Chapter One

Heartbreak is My Hobby

Gabriella Montez took a sip of her mango smoothie and leaned back in her chair. She was surrounded by her three best friends, Sharpay, Taylor, and Kelsi. They were sitting at a table outside of The Coffee Bean.

"And he won't stop calling me. I think I might have to change my phone number." Kelsi sighed.

"Look, he's just not over you yet. Guys always stay around longer than you want them to. That's one of the tough things about being in the Heartbreak Club." Sharpay claimed, taking a big gulp of her frozen beverage.

Gabriella and her friends were known as the Heartbreak Club, because that's exactly what they did. They dated guys, and then dumped them in the harshest of ways. They had earned the name in college, where they had met. After graduation, the club moved in together and continued their hobby.

Their apartment was barely used, for they were usually living with their current boyfriend/victim. But it was paid for by Sharpay, whose father was spectacularly wealthy.

Kelsi was complaining about the guy she had just dumped, Kevin. He had fallen hard for her and demanded that she give him a reason to why she ended it.

"Yeah, change your number. Then he'll get the picture." Taylor suggested.

"Yeah, I agree with Taylor. Speaking of Taylor, what's up with you and Chad?" Gabriella questioned.

"Puh-lease, I ended that two days ago. I'm back in Solitary." Taylor huffed. Solitary was the name they gave their apartment, because living there usually meant that you were single.

"Okay, since we're on the subject of break-ups, its time to end it between you and Gary. And you know we love to hear about your break-ups, there always so bitter!" Sharpay squealed.

Gabriella rolled her eyes. Suddenly the song "Maneater" started playing through the pocket of Gabriella's jeans. She whipped out her phone and pressed it to her ear.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Oh, hey…The park?...sure…okay, bye." Gabriella snapped her phone shut. "It was Gary, he wants to meet me in the park for something important." Gabriella smiled.

"Oh my god, if he wants to pop the question then it'll hurt sooo much more! Make sure you look perfect, show him what he will never have." Kelsi smiled.

Gabriella quickly fixed her hair and make up, then smoothed her shirt. She said goodbye to her friends and walked over to the curb. She flew out her hand and yelled "Taxi!"

A cab stopped in front of her and she climbed inside. "Whe'e to, miss?" The driver asked. He was shabby and overweight, not someone Gabriella would want to get to know.

"Central park, and fast." Gabriella demanded. The driver immediately sped off.

"So, ya got a name?" The cab driver asked in a strong New York accent.

"Gab." Gabriella told him. She never told strangers her full name in case they were a stalker or something.

"Nice name. My name's Pete. Ya got any hobbies?" Pete asked as he pulled up to Central Park.

"Heartbreak is my hobby." Gabriella smiled as she handed him his money and stepped out of the taxi. She searched around for Gary, and finally spotted him sitting on a bench looking at the ground.

Gabriella sped over to him, she couldn't wait to rip his heart to shreds.

"Hey, hottie." Gabriella cooed. Gary immediately looked up and smiled. He had slightly handsome features, with shaggy blond hair and deep ocean green eyes.

"Hey, baby. I was just thinking." He told her. Gabriella looked at him questioningly. She sat down on his lap and placed her arms around his neck.

"About us. I love you so much, you know that." Gary explained, smiling sheepishly.

"Yeah, I know that. And I want you to know that I love you with all of my heart and I want to be with you forever. I want to die with you by my side." Gabriella said sweetly. She pulled his face close to hers and kissed him with all of the passion she could muster.

"I love you too, Gabriella. And, well, will you follow me?" He asked, taking her hand. Gabriella put on a fake smile, knowing where this was going. She jumped of his lap and onto the grass.

"I'd follow you into the gates of hell." Gabriella said, trying to sound lovestruck. In truth, Gabriella believed that she couldn't fall in love with any man. The only people she loved were her family and the rest of the Heartbreak Club.

Gary led her through the park until they reached a clearing at the side of the lake. Gabriella smiled, and held her hand over her heart. There was a blanket with a picnic set up on it.

"Okay, close your eyes." Gary instructed. Gabriella closed her eyes tightly. She felt Gary lead her somewhere.

"Okay, now open them." Gary ordered. Gabriella snapped open her eyes and looked around. They were standing on the blanket, but other than that, there was nothing special going on.

"Am I supposed to be seeing something important, my love?" Gabriella asked. Gary just smiled and pointed up. Gabriella gazed up and gasped. In the sky, an airplane had written the words Marry Me Gabriella?.

Gabriella smiled, trying to act excited. She grabbed Gary and crashed her lips onto his. She immediately deepened the kiss. When they finally separated, Gary had a smile stretched across his face. She then twisted her face into a unpleasant scowl.

"I hate you." Gabriella growled. Gary stepped back, surprised by her sudden change of tone.

"W-what?! B-but, all of that s-stuff you said!" Gary looked around frantically, as if looking for a sign that said "You've just been Punk'd". Gabriella threw her head back and cackled.

"Are you kidding me? You are an idiot. All of that about loving you, those were all despicable lies. I hate you from the bottom of my heart. You were just a good time. Actually, no. You were a horrendous time. And I am overjoyed that we are finally over and I don't have to see your repulsive face ever again!" Gabriella spat.

Gary shook his head furiously. "Are you on drugs or something?" Gary screamed, praying that was the reason she was acting like this.

"Of course I'm not on drugs, you imbecile! I just hate you. You are a no good, dirty rotten, pig that deserves to go burn in the fiery pits of hell for all perpetuity!" Gabriella barked, throwing back her head and letting another malicious cackle escape her mouth.

Gabriella walked over towards the track, followed closely by Gary. "Maybe you just need to rethink this." Gary begged.

Gabriella laughed. She saw a good looking runner coming her way. He had dark brown hair and a muscular build. When he was passing her, she grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him in to her front. She snaked her arms around his waist and pulled his body into hers.

"Um, what are you doing?" The runner asked, even though it was obvious that he was taking pleasure in being this close to such a beautiful woman.

"Don't pretend that you're not enjoying being so close to me. I know you do, because I can tell that you're trying to hide a smile." Gabriella chuckled. The runner's face turned red. He looked around to see if anyone was watching.

Gabriella leaned up and kissed him right on the mouth. She thrust her tongue into his mouth and allowed him to do the same. She heard someone breathing deeply, trying not to cry, and knew that Gary was utterly devastated.

She pulled back from the runner and looked straight into his eyes. She noticed that he had spectacularly green eyes. She went up on her toes, for he was fairly tall, and brushed her lips onto his ear.

"I just need to get this guy away from me." She whispered. The man nodded his head. Gabriella turned to look at Gary, whose face was red with fury. Before she could say anything, he stormed off towards the lake.

Gabriella pulled herself away from the runner. He smiled uncomfortably.

"Um, you're welcome. But…I'm kind of…well…married. So…this won't really work out." The man confessed, expecting her to be angry.

"Oh, well don't worry. I wasn't expecting a relationship, I was just trying to end that one." Gabriella explained.

She did have a heart buried under all of her spite. And part of it envied true love. She secretly wished for a knowledge of what true love felt like, but her mind was more powerful than her heart. And her mind blocked out all romantic feelings for men. Romance and chemistry made breaking up harder than it needed to be.

"Great. You know, I have a brother. He's only 24, I'm 26. I can set you two up if you'd like." The man suggested. Gabriella thought it over. The man's brother was the same age as her. And maybe his good looks were genetic.

"Okay, set us up. Here's my number. Oh, and thanks…uh…" Gabriella realized that she didn't know the man's name as she handed him a slip of paper with her the number of her cell phone on it.

"Kyle Bolton. And my brother's name is Troy." The man smiled. He then continued on running. About ten minutes later, Gabriella decided that she should retrieve her belongings from Gary's apartment.

She took out her phone and dialed his number, and was not surprised when the answering machine picked it up.

"Hi, this is Gary. I'm not home right now, so leave a message after the beep. Beeeeeeep."

Gabriella had been thinking of something to say, but it took her a few moments to recount her choice of words.

"Hey, asshole. I just wanted you to know that I'll be stopping by your shithole for my stuff. Oh, and by the way, you suck. And another thing, that runner was a way better kisser than you." Gabriella spat. She loved to ruin guys like this.

She called a cab and about 7 minutes later, she was standing outside of Gary's apartment door. She opened the door with her key and walked inside. The apartment was normal size, with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a living area.

She went into the bedroom and pulled out her suitcase from under the bed. She opened her drawer and pulled out the few belongings she kept at Gary's home. She never brought much when she 'moved in' because she knew it wouldn't last too long.

After she was finished packing she walked into the living area. She inhaled the scent, it stunk of Gary. She pulled her perfume bottle out of her suitcase and sprayed it in the air. It now smelled of sweet strawberries. But that wasn't enough.

Gabriella sprayed his couch, his carpet, his bed, and practically everything else in his apartment with her perfume. Now he would be left with her haunting smell for months to come.

But Gabriella needed a finishing touch that would mortify Gary, but that he wouldn't notice at first. She tried desperately to think of an idea, but nothing came to mind. She finally thought of something good enough to inflict him with.

Gabriella tiptoed over to his answering machine, even though Gary wasn't home and there was no one to catch her if she was loud. Gabriella pressed the record button on the machine and smiled as if she were auditioning for a role in a major film.

"Hi, you've reached Gary's house. He's currently being an ASSHOLE and you'd be better off not leaving a message. If you ever do converse with him, you will be petrified by the intolerably obnoxious noise that escapes his lips. I strongly recommend NOT leaving a message and urge you to deny ever having a single connection to this duplicitous TOAD!" Gabriella screamed. She removed her finger and smiled, she'd hate to be the next one to call his house.

She strutted out of the apartment and into the hallway, her suitcase rolling behind her. She hastily made her way to the elevator. The last thing she wanted was another spat with Gary.

Unexpectedly, a door swung open and striked her in the face. Gabriella fell to the floor with a thud. She rubbed her throbbing nose.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry. Are you okay?" A deep voice inquired. Gabriella looked up and discovered an extremely handsome face looking down at her. He strongly resembled the runner she had seen. He had a similar bone structure in his face, the same strong build, and almost the exact same hair, except that his was a sandy brown.

"Yeah, I'm fine. My nose just hurts a little. Who are you? I lived here, um…until recently…and never saw you." Gabriella asked.

"Oh, I just moved in. My name's Troy." The man explained, outstretching his arm to help her up. Gabriella grabbed his hand and felt a sudden shiver run throughout her entire body. She dropped his hand and fell onto the floor once again.

"Are you sure that you're okay?" Troy asked her. Gabriella desperately tried to remember why his name sounded familiar, but nothing came to mind.

"Oh, um, yeah. But I think that I'll get up by myself." Gabriella smiled. She pushed herself off the ground and stood up. She looked straight into Troy's eyes and saw that they were amazingly blue. She quickly glimpsed at his clothing and saw that he was dressed rather casually.

"Do you want to come in?" Troy asked, pointing towards the inside of his apartment.

"No thank you. I have somewhere I need to be." Gabriella lied. She felt the urge to go inside his apartment and talk with him for hours, but the thought scared her. The way he made her heart feel like it was trying to beat its way through her ribs was not something she was used to.

"Oh, that's cool. Well, I have things I have to do anyway. Hopefully I'll see you around sometime." He said. Gabriella was surprised that he didn't seem disappointed that she'd turned him down.

Gabriella continued down the hallway and thought about what he had said. If he had things he needed to do, then why had he invited her inside? Would he of made time for her? Gabriella smiled at the thought.

The elevator doors slid open, and a little girl ran out.

"Carly, come back here!" A man chuckled. He stepped out of the elevator with a woman by his side. They were obviously married, and the little girl was their daughter. Gabriella smiled as they chased the little girl down the hallway.

Gabriella watched the family and wished that she could have a family of her own. The sound of the elevator door closing quickly brought her out of her reverie. She flung her arm into the small space between the doors, which opened once again for her. She couldn't believe that she had actually thought of starting something stupid like that.

Having a family was not her thing. She was a proud member of The Heartbreak Club, and that would never change.

Gabriella walked the two blocks down to her apartment complex and entered the front door. The building was very large with marble floors and pillars in the lobby. The elevator doors were painted gold and large decorative plants sat against the walls. In the center of the lobby was a fountain that graduated in golden tiers.

The large lobby was empty except for the man at the front desk. He was fairly old, Gabriella guessed 65 years of age.

"Hey, Robert." Gabriella smiled. The elderly man looked up and smiled back at her.

"Why hello, Miss Montez. How was your day?" Robert asked. Robert was like a father figure to Gabriella, for her own had died when she was a child. Ever since she and her friends had moved in after college, Robert had become determined to make Gabriella a better person.

"It was good. I…um…broke up with Gary." Gabriella mumbled, looking down at the white marble floor. Every time she told Robert about her break-ups, she feared his opinion on her would change.

"Believe it or not that doesn't come as a surprise to me. But don't worry, you'll fall in love some day." Robert smiled.

"How are you so sure?" Gabriella snapped. Robert was always suggesting such things and Gabriella knew them to be false.

"Well, I know that you are capable of love, for I know that you love your friends and that you care greatly about me. I also know that at the rate you go through men, one of them will end up being the one for you." Robert assured her. Gabriella's expression hardened.

"Well I highly doubt that. I am capable of love, but I am not capable of falling in love." Gabriella retorted. She did not hear Robert's response, for she was already on her way toward the elevator.

She stepped inside and pressed the 8 button. As the doors closed, Gabriella closed her eyes. She listened to the sound of the elevator climbing up the shaft and wondered if what Robert said was true. She told herself that he was just a crazy old man who didn't know what he was talking about.

Troy sat back down in his chair and sighed. He looked down at the plethora of papers stacked neatly on top of his mahogany desk. He had a long night of work ahead of him. His phone began to ring and he quickly answered it, grateful for the sudden distraction.

"Hello, Troy Bolton speaking." He answered.

"T-T-Troy! I…I c-c-can't believe it! T-T-T-Taylor broke up with…with...m-m-me!" Chad's voice cried. Troy sighed, he knew that this would happen.

"Chad, just calm down, alright?" Troy pleaded. As much as he cared about his best friend, he had a lot of work that needed to be done by the next day.

"B-b-but I love her!" Chad blubbered.

"Look, you'll find someone new, okay? I have to go, but, you know where to find me." Troy told his friend.

"O-o-okay. Good…good…goodbye."

Troy gently placed the phone back on its base. He stared at the papers in front of him. He might as well get started now. He picked up the one lying on top and read it aloud.

"William Shakespeare is said to be the greatest playwright of all time. He wrote romantic stories either ending in comedy or tragedy. His most famous piece, Romeo and Juliet, is about a young man and woman from rival families that fall in love. It ends in a heartbreaking tragedy, in which both Romeo and Juliet meet their death. One of Shakespeare's well known comical plays is A Midsummer's Night Dream."

Troy had just begun to teach 9th grade English, and his students had to write a report on William Shakespeare and his greatest stories.

The worst overall part of teaching high school kids was that as a handsome young adult, he was dubbed as the "hot teacher". There were rumors going around that he was a lifeguard, a movie star in disguise, and the most popular rumor of all; that he modeled for Abercrombie and Fitch, but quit to become a teacher.

After almost every class, a girl would run in, claiming to have lost something. After minutes of searching, she would finally leave and join up with her giggling friends.

He read through the rest of the paper, then graded it accordingly. He picked up another, and continued this for hours. He had a certain rhythm to his work, pick up a paper…read it…grade it…put it in a pile. It was like that for what seemed like an eternity.

He was taken out of the perfunctory routine by a sudden sharp ringing. It took a few moments until he realized that it was just his phone. He hastily picked it up of the speaker.

"Hello, Troy Bolton speaking."

"Hey, bro. It's Kyle." His brother's voice said.

"Oh, hey man. Why are you calling?" Troy asked.

"Well…I met this girl."

"Dude, you're married! You cannot be having affairs with other women!" Troy commanded disapprovingly.

"Don't worry, I love Claire. I'm not having an affair with another woman. I thought that maybe you'd like to go out with the girl I met some time." Kyle immediately stopped talking.

Troy's mind slipped away to the endless homework, reports, and tests that needed immediate grading. "Sorry, but my schedule's pretty tight."

"How about this weekend? You can just grade stuff on Sunday."

"Kyle, as a teacher one has certain responsibilities. And procrastinating does not fall anywhere onto that list! And to add to that I am striving to be a stellar teacher for these students and putting off my work is irresponsible and unwarranted!" Troy yelled.

"Troy, can you put that into normal language? Proper English isn't exactly my 'forte'." Kyle requested. Troy knew that his brother had put air quotes around the word "forte", even though Troy couldn't see him.

"It's irresponsible to slack off when you're a teacher."

"Ohh. Well still, you can afford to procrastinate for just one day."

"Since when have you known me to approve of that? Slacking off isn't my forte."

"Ah, but just wait and see, young Skywalker. The force is always with you, just dig deep, and you will find it. Feel the urge to put off your work churning inside of you. Take that urge, and turn it into power. Stand up and say 'I know I have to destroy the Death Star, BUT MAYBE I"LL JUST DO IT TOMORROW!'." His brother said in a Yoda-like voice.

"Okay, fine. I guess I can afford to put off some work for a date Saturday." Troy huffed.

"The force is strong with this one. Troy, I am your brother." Kyle said as Darth Vader, even adding the signature wheezy breath at the end.

"Okay, Darth. I think you've had an overdose on the force." Troy chuckled.

"The force of what?" Kyle inquired.

"The force of Starius-warius-obsessius." Troy laughed.

Kyle proceeded in giving Troy the woman's phone number, then bidding him ado. ("May the force be with you, always." was his farewell.)

Troy set the phone number to the side of his work, picking up where he left off. Every few moments he glanced over at it, as if expecting to burst into flames. He tried to go back to work, but the paper on which he had the phone number of his soon to be date called to him like a siren. Eventually his curiosity overcame him and he snatched up his phone.

He hastily punched in the numbers scrawled on the paper and pressed the cold telephone to his ear. As it was ringing Troy though of what he might say to this mysterious woman.

"Hello?"

Her voice sounded familiar, like a beautiful noise you heard once then wished to hear again until years later, you can no longer remember the beautiful noise in which you wished to hear.

"Um, hi." Troy answered dumbly. He smacked himself in the head. Now she was going to think that he was a boring loser.

"Hi, may I ask whose calling?" The familiar voice demanded.

"Yes you may. This is Troy Bolton, you met my brother and he wanted to set us up on a date." Troy explained, his nerves rattling every word that came from his mouth.

"Oh, yes. Kevin, right?"

"No, his name is Kyle. But pretty close. So…um…you wanna meet up for lunch on Saturday?" He asked.

"Sure, do you know where the restaurant Epicurean Delicacies is?"

Troy thought for a moment, then remembered passing by the eatery earlier that week. "I think I do." He laughed.

"Okay, meet me there at noon. Oh, and I'm Gabriella." She told him. Troy heard a soft click signaling that she had hung up. He gently placed the phone back onto its holder.

Gabriella. He liked the way it seemed to mellifluously roll off of his tongue. He quickly turned back to the stack of papers that needed to be done by the next day.

Gabriella opened the door of her apartment, which was silent. But it usually was, for it was very large.

"¡Hola, chicas!" Gabriella yelled. A few hello's came from the kitchen. Gabriella ran in and greeted all of her friends. They were seated at the counter that was in the middle of the kitchen, eating strawberries.

"So, you ended it with Gary?" Kelsi asked, pointing to the suitcase standing behind Gabriella. Gabriella nodded.

"Well? Give us details!" Sharpay demanded. The three girls leaned onto the marble table top to hear her story.

"Well he took me to this picnic place, where he made me close my eyes. When I opened them in the sky was written 'Marry me Gabriella?'. Then I told him that I hated him and I kept screaming at him. Then I met this runner." Gabriella told them.

"More details!" Taylor yelled.

"Well, he was really nice. He's married though, so he said that he'd set me up with his brother." Gabriella exclaimed. Sharpay giggled.

"More details!" She screamed.

"So then I gave him my number. After that I went over to Gary's place to get my stuff. While I was there I met this really hot guy." Gabriella smiled.

"Seriously, WE NEED MORE DETAILS!" Taylor yelled.

"Okay, so he's totally cute, but not in a puppy sort of way. Then when I was in the elevator the guy's brother called me and set up a date." Gabriella explained.

"Awesome! Well, you're not the only one with gossip. I decided that I'm tired of having one boyfriend. So now I have three." Sharpay declared.

"Three at once? Are you going to break all three of their hearts at one time?" Kelsi asked.

"Well, I'm going to date all three of them, then choose which one I like best. Then I'll dump the other two. So then I'll be left with the perfect guy. And then a little later I'll dump him and start over again." Sharpay explained.

"Good technique." Taylor complimented her, staring at the ground.

Gabriella noticed that her friend was looking sad. "Taylor, is everything all right?" She asked.

"No, I…never mind. Everything is fine." Taylor insisted.

Oooh, whats wrong with Taylor? The world may never know! Haha. So, you like? Please review. I'm begging you, you may not be able to see me but trust me. I'm on my knees. Please though, if you hated it just write "purple socks" in your review. I don't want to read a review sayign how much you thought my story sucked.

Next chapter. I don't know when it will come out, but it may take a while because these chapters are hard to write.