Building Passion

Disclaimer: I only own the plot, no characters from High School Musical.

Summary: Greg Montez left his wife Maria and daughter Gabriella years ago, leaving them with hardly anything to get along with. The first few months, Maria would lock herself in her room and cry herself to sleep. Gabriella got a job to provide a little bit for them and as time went on, she grew to despise her dad. So when her mom told her she was going to spend the summer with her dad and his new wife, Gabriella was absolutely devastated.

A/N - Not done with several of my stories, but I just want to throw this out there. It's something I wrote up when I was younger and decided to display it. Tell me if you like it or not and I'll start it as soon as I can. Which might be hard since I have Glamorous, My Baby, Exotic Love, and the 305th HG to finish. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Chapter One

Gabriella sighed as her eyes landed on the big sign reading, Welcome to Crescent City, California! Her mother Maria had a glum look on her face as she road steadily down the smooth cement. She wasn't happy about this, that Gabriella was going to see her father, but he had called and wished to see her since he hadn't in several years. Maria didn't say no and that's what Gabriella hated. She was still under his manipulative spell even though he had left them at such hard times to turn to another woman. Just thinking about that made her stomach turn with anger and her hands clench violently.

"You'll have fun," Maria spoke softly next to her. "He said Judy is a nice person." She swallowed. "And their daughter Jenny is beautiful." That made Gabriella want to scream. Yes, her father had married a few months after the divorce and leaving, and yes a year after that his wife Judy got pregnant with a little girl who was who was now one. "Why did you even say yes?" Gabriella questioned. Maria sighed. "I want him to see you. He hasn't seen you since you were fourteen, Gabriella. I don't want him to miss out on your life. And, please, please, please be kind. After he…left, your attitude has changed."

"That's because he left you for another woman and you still love him," Gabriella snapped. "He left us and we needed him, but he didn't care. He didn't care one single bit and so I'm not going to care about him or Judy or Jenny."

"I know you're―"

"Mom," Gabriela said, sighing. Maria nodded and their conversation was over. After the divorce, they've also grown very distant. Holidays were clammy and awkward; conversations were short and one-worded. Everything had changed after that.

Gabriella leaned back in her seat and pushed her ear phones into her ear. She let the music from her iPod travel slowly into her ears so maybe her mind can ease somewhere else for now.

Thirty minutes later, Maria made her way into a drive way. Gabriella looked at the house. It was a nice size, and it looked pretty good. "You ready?" Maria whispered thinly. She couldn't keep her eyes off of the house. "Are you?" Gabriella asked back, knowing this was killing her mom. She'd have to see Judy and Jenny and Greg. And seeing them all together was probably equivalent to being stabbed a million times in the heart. "As ready as I'll ever be," Maria answered before tugging her lips up into a tight, fake smile. The two exited the car. Gabriella grabbed her two suitcases from the trunk and Maria grabbed the other two. Slowly, they crept forward towards the house and Gabriella knocked on the door. It opened up after about five seconds and Greg gasped. "Gabriella! My God, you've grown so big. You're beautiful, m'ija. How are you?" Gabriella just rolled her eyes and walked past him. Maria sighed. She handed the suitcases to Greg. "I'm going to go now. Take good care of her, Gregory."

"I will, Maria," he said. "But why don't you stay for some tea? I'd love for you to meet Judy and Jenny." He seemed so nonchalant about this, but it wasn't. Maria shook her head. "I have a long drive and plane ride ahead of me. I'll talk to you later. And Gabriella's in a sour mood today, but don't mind it, okay?" Maria turned and left. Greg sighed and walked back into the house, kicking the door closed with his foot.

Gabriella was stood in the middle of the room, inspecting the house closely. It was nice. Nicer than their house, actually. A tan, kind of beige, actually, coated the walls, and different abstract and cultural paintings hung above it. It was very modern with 'L' shaped couches, pristine glass tables and a shaggy rug beneath its legs. Gabriella stared in almost awe at the pretty statues placed neatly in almost every corner of the room. The place looked really great. Better than theirs, actually, and that bitter attitude poured back into her mind. "How are you, Gabriella?" Greg tried again. Gabriella whirled around to look at him. "Where's my room?" she asked, ignoring his question again. Greg's broad shoulders deflated, but he quickly recovered. "How about you meet Judy and Jenny, first? They're in the living room."

Gabriella let out a loud, exasperated sigh and clutched tighter onto her suitcase. She didn't go into the living room. Instead she marched up the stairs to find her room by herself. Judy came from the living room with Jenny cradled in her arms. "Maria said she'd be moody," Greg sighed. "She hates me."

"No she doesn't," Judy reassured him softly. "She just needs some to adjust. By the end of the summer, she'll love you like you never left."

Judy and Greg were oblivious that Gabriella was at the top of the steps, listening. She shook her head and snickered quietly. Yeah, right. He leaving was so fresh in her mind. And she was going to show him just how much she hated him. Gabriella continued her journey upstairs. She checked in every room. There were three so she summed it down to the one without clothes sprawled everywhere and jewelry hanging off of the dresser and the one without a crib and stuffed animals galore. It was a pretty room. Lavender walls, white, clean carpet. There was even a French door that opened to a balcony. Gabriella dropped her suitcases and jumped on the bed. It practically swallowed her.

Gabriella pulled her iPhone out and saw she had some text messages and missed calls from some of her friends. They were mostly from her best friend Kayla. Gabriella dialed her number and pressed the phone to her ear, waiting for her to pick up.

"Gabs? Are you there? How is it?"

"Yeah, I'm here," Gabriella said. "I already hate it. They're gonna try to be nice to me. But a summer here won't make me forget the summer he left us. In fact, I think I'll hate him even more."

"Gabs, give him a try," Kayla said. "Just once."

"No. I had to watch my mom be depressed over a jackass like him. I had to pay a lot of our bills to keep the house and some food. I can never forgive him, Kayla."

"Fine, don't forgive him. Just don't be too hard on him, okay? Look, my cousins are here so I'll talk to you later. Love you."

"Love you, too. Bye." Gabriella pressed the END button and put her phone on her nightstand. She sat up and nearly screamed when she saw her dad there, shuffling awkwardly on his feet. "How long have you been there?" she asked, anger rising. He just invaded a serious space of her privacy. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "But I want to talk to you."

"About what?" Gabriella stood and bent to take clothes out of her suitcase. She walked over to the dresser and started stuffing the items in the drawers. "I know you're upset about me leaving," Greg started.

"Upset?" Gabriella snorted. Then added sarcastically, "Sure, okay."

"But sometimes love for people dies as time goes on. I didn't mean to meet Judy. She was my co-worker and we...well, we just connected. You don't understand, and I couldn't live with your mom knowing I betrayed her."

"But what about me?" Gabriella said, twirling around. "She was so depressed and I had to watch her. Did you know she tried to kill herself? Did you know for months I was the one who paid the bills because she never went into work and got fired? You don't know how much it hurts and you never will because you're a self-centered asshole."

"Gabriella, you're angry, I know. But I would like it if you wouldn't use crass language."

"And I would like it if I weren't here right now. Because I hate you. And I'll never love you like I did. So it looks like we both are deprived of what we want." Gabriella turned back around and muttered lowly under her breath, "Asshole."

Greg sighed and walked out of the room. He closed the door quietly behind him and Gabriella stuffed the rest of her clothes into the drawers messily. She walked to the French doors and opened them. Immediately her skin was caressed by the chilly, cool summer air and she smiled. She stepped out onto the terrace and looked down. A tree was planted right beside it and it would be easy to scale up and down on. Gabriella looked back into her room before sighing and throwing her leg over the railing. It was a bit raggedy and worn-out, but it seemed stable enough. She threw her other leg over it so she was standing on the very ledge. Carefully, she lowered her leg and felt around for a branch. When she found one, she rested it there and began her escape.

Gabriella took each branch carefully, making sure she didn't slip. When she was on the ground, she started a sprint down the street, feeling giddy. She had never sneaked out before and something about it was exhilarating.

Once she was a while form the house, she slowed down into a walk and took time to take in her surroundings. She noticed a guitar store and pressed her face against the glass to see inside. When she was thirteen, her mom had taught her how to play. But after Greg left, she stopped teaching Gabriella. Gabriella stopped playing, as well. It just didn't seem right. But the guitar was like gravity. Every time she saw one, it was if it were pulling her to it, willing her to grab it and play just one song. "May I help you?"

Gabriella turned, startled at the voice. A boy stood there, a guitar hung around his shoulders and neck by its strap. He was beautiful. Blue, piercing eyes and a well-defined body. His hair hung with floppy strands in front of his face and he flipped it to get it out of his eyes. Gabriella shook her head. "Ah…no. Sorry. I was just looking."

"Well look somewhere else. This isn't an art boutique; it's a store where people buy things. Buy something or leave."

Gabriella's mouth dropped open. She had never had someone talk to her so rudely. She crossed her arms over her chest and raised her chin, eyeing him. "Did someone throw a squirrel down your pants?"

"Ha-ha, very funny. Now get off of my property."

"You own this store?"

"My parents do. Now go before I call the cops."

"Okay, jeez," Gabriella said, frowning. "It's not like I'm robbing the place."

"That a threat?" His perfect eyebrow quirked and Gabriella rolled her eyes. She turned and started down the street. Were all the guys here assholes? She continued down the dull, polluted sidewalk. The climate was cold, but a pinch of warmth wrapped around her bare arms. She supposed her Florida purple tank top and tan shorts with purple flip-flops weren't exactly for here.

The rest of the city was dull, nothing too exciting. She found a park and went to it, curious. Kids ran around, couples were sprawled across picnic baskets. Gabriella also noticed a basketball court. Attentively, she crept to it and picked up a ball besides it. She rolled the sphere in her hands, feeling its rough texture before bending her knees, angling the ball, and letting it go and sail through the air. She watched as it swooped into the net. Nothin' but net. Gabriella went for another shot, but before she could, someones booming voice startled her. "Yo!" Gabriella lifted the ball and whirled around, ready to strike. Some boys were moving coolly towards her. And the first person she saw was none other than the grumpy boy from the guitar store. Her eyes narrowed and she lowered the ball. "Yeah?"

"My ball," he said. "Go play with your dolls, or something." They stopped a mere foot away form her. Gabriella scowled and tucked the ball neatly under her arm. "Your ball? Well, how about we play a game. Whoever reaches ten shots, wins the ball." The air was tense and silent for a moment before they all started to double over and cackle. Gabriella's eyebrows rose as if they were crazy. "What?"

"You wanna challenge me?" The boy asked, holding his side from laughter. Gabriella nodded, her mouth dipping into a frown. The boy let out a breath. "Wow, you're serious, huh? Alright. Hey, but what if I win?"

"I don't know." She shrugged her shoulders meekly.

"How about you strip your clothes off at the lake and jump into it?" one of the boys said. He had curly hair that hung in bouncy strings around his brown skin. They all agreed, slapping each other's hands and smirking disgustingly. Gabriella stepped back, mortified. "No. I don't even know you. I'm not going to strip in front of you."

"You can wear a towel," the boy said. The boy with the curly hair frowned, but didn't say anything. "Look, I'm Troy. This is Chad, Jason, and Zeke. I'll give you Chad so we can even it out and so you'll have someone decent. Jason, you keep score." Chad smirked and went to stand beside Gabriella. He was the boy with the curly hair. Jason ran off to the sidelines and the remaining boy, Zeke, went to stand beside Troy. They stood in position and Troy smirked at Gabriella. "Ready, girl?"

"It's Gabriella," she muttered and then nodded. The game started and they were moving like light. Gabriella had the ball. She faked right, then left, and then came up beside the basket, quickly jumping and shooting. Surprising them, the ball swooped into the net, falling onto the pavement below. Gabriella smirked at their baffled faces and swiped at the little sweat bead trickling down her forehead. "What? C'mon, pass the ball." Troy's eye's widened. The game started again. Troy was taken aback by her score, so he pushed extra hard. That earned him nine points only half-way into the game.

But it wasn't enough. Troy thought long and hard about his basketball. It wasn't just a basketball. No, it was a basketball signed by Michael Jordan himself. Troy swallowed after Gabriella and Chad made their ninth shot. They were tied up, nine-nine. No way was he going to loose to a girl, especially a girl who wore flip-flops and tank-tops. Chad kind of hung back, not helping Gabriella at all, but Gabriella paid no attention to him. Yeah, she noticed Michael Jordan's signature, and that made her want the ball even more. She was almost there, almost there. She was so close…

Gabriella cursed loudly when Troy dribbled the ball from her hand. He crossed the court, passed to Zeke and then ran up to the net. Gabriella looked hopelessly over at Chad who was jumping form leg to leg, pretending to help. Jackass. She ran to Troy to block, but Zeke had already made the pass and Troy was already dunking. Gabriella frowned and crossed her arms over her chest angrily. See, this is why she detested boys. "That's not fair!" Gabriella insisted. "He didn't help me on purpose!" Gabriella jerked an accusing finger at Chad who only sneered and shook his head, making tendrils of dark hair bounce and swirl. Troy bent and picked his ball up, smirking. "You gonna cry?"

"No." Gabriella shook her head. She wasn't going to cry, obviously, but she was ready to throw a hissy fit. Her and her big mouth, now she'd have to strip in front of four horny boys and jump into a cold body of water. "I'm leaving."

"No your not," Troy said. "We had a deal. Come on, the lake isn't too far away."

"I need a towel."

"Oh, come on. You'll be fine." Troy draped an arm around her shoulders and Gabriella rolled her eyes. They walked to the lake, which was gratefully secluded from anything else. Troy gave her a shove and Gabriella glared at him. She slowly pulled off her shoes, untying them slowly. She'd go as slow as humanly possible.

Slowly, each particle of clothing began to fall. The boys watched, on the balls of their feet, as she stripped. When she was done, she took no time to jump into the water. The boys hollered from behind her and she tried to block it out. She stayed under water as long as she could, before resurfacing and gasping for air. But the boys were gone. She looked around for them, and then noticed her clothes were missing, too. "Guys!" she screamed. She heard snickers as they showed themselves. They were holding her clothes. Troy was dangling her panties and bra between pinched fingers, grinning. "Ya know, I think I might keep this." He snickered when her mouth fell open. "But, I mean, if you want it, come and get it."

"Give me my clothes now!"

"Come and get them," Jason said. He grabbed her panties and stuffed them in his pants, making Gabriella's face go red in anger and the boys' faces go red with laughter.

Gabriella officially despised Crescent City.

BP

"Gabriella, c'mon, it's gettng late," Troy called out. Gabriella glared at him through the foggy midnight air and crossed her arms over her chest underwater. Troy quirked an eyebrow and sighed. Zeke, Chad and Jason had fled about thirty minutes ago saying that their curfew was in an hour. And so was his. He was pretty sure Gabriella would stick to not coming out of the water until he walked away.

"Then give me my goddamn clothes," she seethed. Even through the faint light illuminating form the moon, Troy could see the rosy tint spreading over her olive-tan cheeks. He didn't know if she was embarrassed or if she was cold. Troy suddenly felt a pang of guilt surge deep within him. He sighed and stood up. "Fine. I'll cover my eyes and you can come and get them." Gabriella quirked an eyebrow. Then her eyes lowered, looking skeptical. "How do I know you aren't peaking...?"

"Would I ever lie to you?" The corner of his mouth pulled up into a taunting smirk. Gabriella rolled her eyes and sighed. "Go stand in front of that tree with your back facing me and cover your eyes...just in case." Troy rolled his eyes, but nonetheless, waltzed over to the tree. Gabriella was fast. She braced her hands against the spiky grass, and then pulled herself out of the water. The cold air hit her like a bullet. She shivered and made a beeline for her clothes.

Troy tried his hardest not to peak when he heard rustling. His hands were clammy against his face and he so desperately wanted to turn so he could catch a glimpse of the raven-haired beauty. Ever so slightly, he separated his index and middle finger and turned. He couldn't stop the smirk from forming when he saw her clasping her purple lace bra in place. His eyes dropped to her lacy-covered underwear that matched her bra. He swallowed and quickly turned around, in fact, he was a little too quick, so it wasn't easily unnoticed. Gabriella shrieked and pulled on her shirt hastily. "Keep your eyes closed, goddammit! I swear to God...if you peak one more time..." Her angry voice trailed off and Troy rolled his eyes. After about several more minutes, Troy heard her voice again. "Okay...you can look now."

Troy uncovered his eyes and turned. Gabriella was looking away, her arms crossed over her chest. Troy smirked and stalked over to her. "C'mon...you know it was funny."

"More like humiliating," Gabriella said, snorting unattractivly. She shook her head and started forward. "I'm going home."

"Good luck," Troy said, but Gabriella didn't acknowledge him. Well, that was until he said, "You know, with going in the wrong direction and stuff." Gabriella sighed, turned, and started the other way. Troy chuckled and followed her.

When they entered the park again, Gabriella didn't even mutter a goodbye before heading for home. She knew she'd get in trouble. It was already night. And so, when she walked into the house, she wasn't shocked when her father was sitting on the couch, his face red. Judy was next to him, with Jenny bouncing on her lap. "Where were you?" he asked, his voice firm. Gabriella rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't act like you care now. You never did care about me."

"Dammit, Gabriella, you listen to me," Greg said. "I...may not be in love with your mother, but I still love you. You're still my daughter, and so you will listen and respect me. What were you doing anyway? You're drenched."

Gabriella lifted her head. "None of your business."

"Honey," Judy said, sighing. "I know you're upset, but your father is right. We are the adults and you should show a bit more respect."

"Yeah? Show the same respect my father did when he left my mom for you?" Gabriella sneered. "Yeah, right. And you aren't the boss of me. You may be able to steal my father away, but I will never give into you. You're as worthless to me as the dirt on this floor." Greg shot up, his eyes ablaze. Gabriella switched her narrowed eyes to him, and she frowned. "Gabriella, I've had enough of you. Go to your room and you aren't coming out until tomorrow. Now apologize."

Gabriella turned to Judy again. "Okay. I'm sorry. Sorry for myself that I'm here in this hellhole, that is." Gabriella turned on her heel and marched up to her room. She didn't care how wrong and bratty she sounded. All she wanted was to go back home, to sink in her own bed and get far away from Crescent City.

So, tell me what you think! Whether it's something to help me improve, or if it's saying I did a good job, please review. I already have chapter two getting started.

Thanks!-Brittany