Hey people! Here is my new story, hopefully eagerly awaited lol ;)
I just want to say that I did A LOT of research on this subject to make sure I got the details right so I hope you guys learn as much as I did reading it!
I really enjoy reading your reviews you guys keep me going so please let me know what you think when you're done :)
Also if any of you are budding writers, check out the latest ZA Angels Write Off Theme- Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder! I read and review all the entries made :)
Ang
CHAPTER 1
"Uhm…hi…" A warm voice sounded beside Gabriella.
She looked up, startled at the interruption and quickly remembered where she was.
"Oh, hi…" she offered back sheepishly with a blush. She had ventured into the entrance of the hall that was housing the 'HIV for everyone' (otherwise known as HIVe) group tonight, but she hadn't actually made her way fully inside. In fact, she was just debating how to turn and go without causing too much distraction when the voice had disturbed her. And now she was caught out, trapped somewhat.
The voice that belonged to a very handsome, boyish young man before her sounded again.
"Are you joining us?" Two thick, animated brows lifted and Gabi found her eyes following their journey. She hid a smile.
"Uh…."
The guy swallowed. "It's okay if you want to leave." He assured gently. "It's just we're starting and I need to know if you're in or out?"
Gabi took a breath and cast her eyes up. "Can I just listen?"
His face softened and his smile hit his eyes if not his mouth. "Of course."
"Then I'm in," she lifted her chin and followed him further into the open space which was decorated with chairs. She smiled shyly at the other occupants and sat down.
She slid her over-the-shoulder bag off her body and unbuttoned her duffel coat, her long, gray jumper-dress sleeves wrapped around her hands to keep them warm. She had on tights with it and long black suede boots, her hair curly and black falling down her shoulders, her dark eyes outlined with liner.
"You're new," the guy next to her announced and she pressed her lips in.
"Yeah…"
"Marvin," he reached across to introduce himself and she smiled.
"Gabriella. But call me Gabi," she added as she shook his hand.
"Okay, gang…" The stranger that had lured her in began the session and she was surprised someone his age would run a group such as this. He looked too young to cope with the obvious weight of the subject matter at hand. But still, looks could be deceptive…
"Newbie!" Marvin called out before the guy could finish and Gabi blushed as he pointed at her.
"Yes, thank you, Marv," the group leader smirked. "I think we're all aware of that."
"Her name is Gabriella," he shared and Gabi blushed even harder.
"Great, can I carry on now?" The guy checked and Marvin nodded.
"Ok, good, Evening all, most of you know me already, my name is Troy Bolton and I run HIVe- HIV for everyone-" he explained, "…unless I'm out of the country, imprisoned unfairly or…well, just imprisoned…" he joked and everyone chuckled.
"For those of you that are new to this, don't be intimidated, we don't bite. Well maybe on a full moon but then we always did say there was something strange about Eric…" he teased of the large-built guy next to him.
Eric gave him a look.
"Hey, I'm only kidding, big guy, nothing but love for ya," Troy winked and punched his arm affectionately.
Eric stood to hug Troy and squeezed him too-tight deliberately, causing Troy to wince and carry on his intro a little breathlessly.
"Well, as you can see, we're all one big happy family here- unless Jennifer throws her toys out and then we're all in for it!" He teased another familiar face and she flipped him a 'V' sign in disgust.
"Okay, let's get on with this before there's a revolt…" he muttered, his eyes falling on Gabi and she bit her lower lip nervously, hoping he wouldn't ask her anything.
"Who wants to go first?" He checked of the band and quickly people began talking about their week, their month or even their year since being diagnosed with HIV.
Troy budged Marvin over to sit next to Gabi to protect her somewhat from the rest of the group but she would have preferred him to sit opposite so she could study his features more.
Okay, he had amazing blue eyes. That had been immediately obvious as soon as he had spoken. Along with having soft, full lips. And he was muscled, she could tell through the clingy red knit jumper and jeans he wore with red converse. His hair…well, his hair was kind of a mess, actually. Kind of just…ruffled by his fingers and sat there messy, but still, it didn't detract from his extremely handsome face. He looked like a Hollywood actor and if he wasn't sat there in a fraying knit jumper with hair like a birds nest, she might have thought he was, too.
But his age still shocked her. He couldn't be more than 22. She could feel his vibrancy and energy every time he broke into the discussion and expressed his views or relayed information. He didn't just say the words. He owned them.
"So what do you think?" His voice was too near and it spooked her.
She gasped, embarrassed at being caught out. She flicked her eyes around and noticed some people had left to go outside to smoke and some were getting soda from the machine.
"Break time already?"
"It's been half an hour…" Troy teased and she frowned.
Really? Already?
Gabi cleared her throat. "So uh…you're here because…" she began, lifting her brows, but he didn't follow her silent question. "Why did you start the group?" She tried again.
Troy smiled at her bemusedly, relaxing in his chair. "Because we all needed somewhere to go and talk." He answered simply of him and the group members.
"So you're…?" She led, confused.
"HIV positive?" He squinted, bemused. "Yeah."
Oh.
Gabi's mouth opened as she processed this information. "I thought you might be a friend or a relative…" She murmured, doubly shocked now she knew he was affected too, due to his obvious young age.
"No…why would I run a support group on something I didn't know anything about?" He wondered, confused at her reaction.
"I…I just…" She failed for words. "You might have found out about it if you'd lost someone…" She offered feebly, feeling excruciating shame.
"You came to the right place, Gabriella," he assured her. "HIV is not a death sentence."
/
"So, did you go?" Taylor asked the next morning of Gabi's attendance at HIVe.
"Yup." Gabi nodded once and sipped her tea.
"And?"
"And what?"
Taylor rolled her eyes. "And how was it?"
"Well the guy who ran it was a total hottie for a start…" Gabi smiled around her cup and waited for Taylor's indignant gasp which came just as predicted.
"You're kidding!"
Gabi shook her head. "And it was really informative. I didn't know very much last night and I thought I was informed," she mused.
"So…what's the outlook…is it bad?" Taylor ventured, chewing her lower lip.
Gabi took a breath in. "You should come to the group they explain it so much better there, but basically, there's ways to cope with it."
Taylor nodded and looked to the table with sadness in her eyes. "I'm just afraid to go there in case-" Her voice caught and Gabi quickly rounded the table.
"In case what, Tay?" She asked her friend.
Taylor looked up, her face filled with sadness. "Nothing…" She denied quickly. "It's nothing."
/
Gabriella Montez and Taylor McKessie had been best friends since they were five years old. Gabi's mother, Christa, had moved them to Albuquerque and Gabi had joined elementary school there and immediately been befriended by the popular and clever Taylor McKessie.
Throughout their teenage years they had shared the pains of growing up, heartache and the unfathomable mystery that was boys and somehow they had remained tight-knit even though their worlds had changed drastically growing up.
Taylor had become a relief doctor, choosing to travel to far-flung countries that needed aid and Gabi had decided to stay rooted at home, opening her own cake shop which was unbelievably successful for such a small town.
But they both made it work. They both loved each other dearly. They were best friends, after all.
But through heartache, through loss, failed relationships and life's let-downs, neither of them had expected this. This news was possibly the only thing that could tear them apart.
But only if they let it.
/
"I was hoping you'd come back…" The warm voice was at least a little familiar.
Gabi smiled up into blue eyes. "What is that?" She gestured to his hair with her finger and Troy looked a little affronted.
"You don't like it?" He wondered, a little hurt.
Gabi shrugged. "It's your hair."
Troy squinted. "You have nice hair, though."
Gabi blushed and pursed her lips. "Well, thank you."
She swallowed and watched him as he smiled slowly at her, wondering why he was paying her a compliment. She wasn't exactly anything to write home about.
She baked all day and worked all night on her paperwork, she was like the girl next door with no next door, she mused. She really wouldn't stand out in a crowd. So why had she tickled Troy's interest?
"Troy…" Marvin called his attention towards the waiting group.
"I have to go…you know…" He gestured the group with a flick of his chin.
"Oh, sure…"
Gabi trailed over to the circle and sat down, still trying to fathom Troy when the session started, pulling her out of her thoughts.
"I met a guy this week," Jennifer offered, chewing gum and popping it loudly. "So when do I tell him- before we hit third base or when we go all the way and then send him running?" She asked the group.
Troy smiled at her sympathetically. "There are ways to be careful, Jen. But you need to be honest with him…"
"Have you had to tell a girl you're HIV positive?" Jen asked him and he took a breath in.
"Yeah. And I guess I haven't found the right girl yet because it didn't exactly go too well…"
Jen twisted her lips. "Being honest means ending what we have before it starts," she conceded.
"Has anyone else got advice for Jen?" Troy moved the attention onto the rest of the group with practiced ease and it wasn't until the end of the session that Gabi got his attention all to herself.
"Think you might be back next week?" Troy wondered lightly.
Gabi pursed her lips. "I should think so."
"Good," he twinkled. "I'm kind of getting used to you hanging around," he added as if to soften the clear intention of his interest he had expressed before.
"Hm, thanks, I think," Gabi half-frowned, half-smiled before she bid the group goodnight.
/
The box of brownies that Gabi juggled was dangerously close to slipping as she confronted the door to the centre that housed 'HIVe'. It was a push-out door, meaning she had to grasp the handle and pull to get inside- a trick that was proving rather interesting with an arm full of Tupperware. Maybe she should have left the cookies in the car, she mused as the smaller box atop the brownies threatened to slide to the ground.
"Hey, hey…"
Marvin's voice preceded his presence, where he quickly rescued her by taking the door and the cookie box, leaving her only with the task of sliding through with her brownies.
"Thank you!" She puffed out a breath and slipped inside, checking down herself before they went inside the meeting room. Her jeans and black-knit jumper were simple and un-inspiring but she barely had time to shower and change after work today so her choice of outfit came from speed rather than choice.
She considered what she might have worn instead, seeing as it only seemed to be an issue because she wanted to impress the ever-intriguing Troy.
She smirked at her own thoughts. Well, she was a baker and a workaholic so what would he be interested in her for, anyway?
But just in case, she had kind of hoped to try harder with her outfit to try and pretend to the world at large she was capable of looking, well, nice.
"Wow, is this food?" Marvin's voice brought her out of her thoughts and she smiled over her shoulder at him as she entered the room.
"Ye-" She began, cut off when she collided with Troy as she took her attention away from her route for two seconds. "Oops, sorry!" She apologized quickly as he stumbled back and rubbed his tummy.
"Ouch," he grumbled teasingly, though there was a mischievous light in his eyes. "Wait, are those brownies?"
Gabi giggled at his o'd expression, blushing as the group soon took notice of her rather clumsy entrance.
"Uh…yeah…I baked them. For everyone," she added with a shy swallow.
"Ooh, yum," Jennifer quickly rose and split the box lid, helping herself to a gooey treat, looking up to Gabi to thank her briefly.
"Jen," Troy rolled his eyes and sighed at her bluntness and Gabi smiled at him.
"It's okay, really," she assured. "Go on, take one…"
"Can I have two?" Eric asked as he shouldered up to Troy.
"Of course you can, I made loads…" She obliged the larger man and she stood patiently while the box slowly emptied.
"Does that mean I get the cookies to myself?" Marvin piped up behind her and she turned and laughed at him, then at Eric as he yelled 'There's cookies?' which just seemed to cause another furore in the round.
"Okay, okay…." Troy calmed the inhabitants as he scooped out his own brownie and mouthed 'thank you' to Gabi as he sat and started his intro for the new members attending tonight.
"I would like to thank Gabriella for bringing these frankly delicious treats for us tonight…" He led as she came to sit down with her own portion.
Gabi blushed. "Really, it's no problem, I bake for a living so…"
"Really?" Jennifer frowned and Gabi nodded, but Jennifer didn't say anything else so Gabi cleared her throat.
"And please call me Gabi," she added to her new friends.
"I'll call you anything you want if you feed me these every day, baby," Marvin teased beside her and she giggled and swiped his arm.
"You're such a tool!" She accused and he turned and gave her a frankly flirty look.
"Would you maybe think about dating me? Just so I can have this chocolate sex every night?" He asked.
"Marvin…" She reproached with a shy look.
"Hell, I'm not even kidding, you're beautiful anyway…"
"Okay, Marv," Troy cut in with a throat-clearing. "Maybe you can save your flirting for later…" He suggested lightly with a brow lift and Gabi blushed again at the insinuation she would be attractive to any of these men let alone handsome, confident guys such as Troy and Marvin.
"Oh, you getting' jealous bro'?" Marvin teased their leader and Troy smirked, playing him at his own game.
"A li'l bit," he tipped his head and joked while order was restored to discuss more pressing issues- such as the research into new drugs and which had made it onto the market to help with the immune system issues experienced by those affected.
"Tonight was kind of serious," Gabi mentioned as she was led to the door by Troy.
"Yeah, sometime it is, sometimes we just decide 'to hell with it' and play games…"
"Hm," Gabi thought on that.
"Your cakes went down well…"
She shrugged. "Well, it's my living…"
"Can I walk you to your car?" He asked lightly, but his brows rose and his lips pursed in waiting for her answer.
She smiled. "I think that can be allowed."
Outside, Troy dipped his hands into his pockets and let a breath out which smoked into the cold night air.
"You must be freezing, go back inside," Gabi reproached as she unlocked her car door.
"Well, maybe I'm freezing my nuts off for a reason," he suggested, running his fingers through the tip that was his hair.
"Oh?" She lifted her chin.
"If I want to go on a date with you do I have to sort my hair out?" He wondered.
Gabi lifted her brows. "Are you asking me out?"
"No…well…kind of…" Troy smiled cutely with a blush.
Gabi smiled and dove into her bag, pulling out a pen. She leaned forward to grab his hand and then she proceeded to write her number on his palm.
"Call me if you decide that 'kind of' becomes 'yes'," she teased with a twist of her lips and then she slid into her car and revved the engine before pulling away.
/
"You did what?" Taylor's mouth hung open in surprise.
"I gave him my number," Gabi shrugged.
"The guy has HIV, Gabi," her friend accused and Gabi swallowed, hurt by her friend's harsh words.
"I know."
"Then what exactly are you planning on doing?" She wondered harshly.
"Dating," Gabi looked up into her friend's brown eyes.
"And end up like him?" She lifted her arched brows. "Infected?"
"I really hope some guy doesn't say that about you, Tay," Gabi accused back, more softly, reminding her friend which one of them were in the vulnerable position. Reminding her which one of them were in fact, 'infected'.
Her friend took a deep breath and nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just…I don't want to see you get hurt." She added solemnly.
"It's just a date. He's a really sweet guy and I'd like to get to know him. Is that so wrong?" Gabi beseeched.
"As long as that's all it is, Gabi…" Taylor warned with a knowing look.
"I promise."
/
Promises were hard to keep. People say them every day with no intention of sticking to it and what's worse, is that by breaking them, feelings are hurt.
But Gabi knew she could stick to the promise she made to Taylor. She too felt the fear trickle over her skin at what could happen if she let this friendship with Troy grow into anything more. She could become HIV positive, too.
But he was so easy with it, so comfortable in his own skin and she wanted to find out more. She wanted to find out how he came to be that way and then maybe she could help her friend out.
Maybe Taylor could be happy again.