Chapter One: The Aftermath

Troy rushed off the court, Gabriella in tow. Troy had just won the championship for the East High Wildcats and the ruckus on the court was becoming too much for him to handle. Sure, he loved the crowd, but after being interrupted already in his biggest mission of the night, he decided to take matters into his own hands as he took Gabriella's hand and led her outside of the gym into the beautiful campus of the school. He stopped in front of one of the benches and quickly leaned over, gently brushing his lips against hers, catching her slightly off guard. They pulled away with silly grins on their faces, just smiling at each other.

"I've been wanting to do that all night," Troy laughed, as he hugged her to him.

"I was wondering when you'd get the chance," she grinned, resting her head against his chest.

Troy rubbed her back soothingly, they had been through a lot in the past few weeks mostly because of what their friends had deemed suitable for them. "I was about to kill Chad, though," he chuckled throatily. "And there is no doubt in my mind that he did that on purpose," Troy pulled away reaching out to grab Gabriella's hand, as they headed back towards the gym.

As they entered the gym, Coach Bolton charged forward hugging his son to him. "Great job, son. We did it! And you got voted MVP of the league this season!"

"Yea, that's great dad," Troy gasped out, trying to get out of his father's strong embrace.

"Party at my house, Captain," Chad called, patting him on the back. "It just wouldn't be a party without you and your singing… maybe we'll have a karaoke competition too…" he said chuckling. Troy just pushed him as he headed farther into the stands to find his mom.

"Congratulations honey!" Mrs. Bolton called from the stands. Troy hopped the last few bleachers, letting go of Gabi's hand to hug his mother. "Thanks mom," he said, looking back at Gabi. "Oh, Mom, this is Gabriella, she's the one I was singing with a few hours ago."

"It's nice to meet you, Gabriella. Troy has told me about you. Good job out there tonight," she said grinning. Troy just grabbed Gabi's hand, pulling her closer.

"Thank you, Mrs. Bolton," Gabriella blushed.

"You two don't have to stay here, you go have a good time at your after party. I expect you home by midnight, Troy," she said in a suddenly stern voice.

"Whatever you say, Mom," he quipped. "Night, Mom," he said as Gabi got in a 'Good night, Mrs. Bolton,' as he swung her around towards the floor where the rest of the team was still celebrating in the victory.

The team slowly filed out, heading towards Chad's house to celebrate. Since Chad only lived a few blocks away from the school, everyone walked. When they got there, there was a large sound system out on the lawn with music blasting out of it. People filed out onto the lawn, just enjoying themselves after the incredibly busy day that the whole school had just had. It seemed that after that day there were a few more couples on the East High scene. Not only had Troy and Gabriella gotten together, but so had Chad and Taylor and a few others that aren't really worth mentioning in the big scheme of things.

A pick-up basketball game had been started shortly after the party had started and Troy had been dragged onto the court to play. It was three versus three half court basketball, Troy, Chad, and Jason, against Zeke, Ryan, and another guy from the city championship team. Although Ryan was known for his acting, he wasn't half bad at basketball, which seemed to surprise everyone who was watching. It was a game to twenty, going by ones.

"Ready to lose again, Ryan?" Troy taunted, smirking at him.

"We'll see about that, Bolton," Zeke called out while he was guarding Chad.

The game went furiously until the score was tied 19-19. "Have to win by two," Chad told them as he took the ball at the point. He drove at Zeke before passing it outside to Troy who drove past Ryan. Zeke got in his way and he kicked it out to Jason who hit the outside "J" to put Troy's team up by one.

Zeke took the ball at the top, but didn't have it very long because Chad stuck his hand in poking it loose. The ball was spun around the key until it resided in Troy's hands. He crossed over left on Ryan and ran right, dribbling behind his back to get the step on him. Chad god down on all fours in front of the basket as Troy catapulted off of his back and dunked it in for the victory. "That's game!" Jason called out as he jumped up.

"Do you guys ever get tired of basketball?" Sharpay asked rolling her eyes.

The guys looked at each other and answered, "No," in unison. They all shook hands as they headed back to the party to get something to drink and relax. Gabriella came to Troy's side giving him a half hug. "Eww, you're sweaty," she laughed.

Troy laughed as he grabbed a towel that Chad offered him and wiped his face. Gabi grabbed Troy's hand and dragged him over to the dance floor. "You can't be serious, I just finished a basketball game," Troy whined.

"You're not getting out of this one, Bolton." They started dancing, letting themselves relax for the first time in a very long time. With the absence of parents, it made it much more enjoyable. As the first song finished, Chad grabbed Gabriella and Troy and pulled them up to the "stage."

"You guys are singing," he told them. He handed them both microphones and left them. Troy and Gabriella looked at each other, shrugging. The karaoke mix of "A Whole New World" from Disney's Aladdin started to cry out over the party.

"This should be interesting," Troy whispered over to Gabriella as she giggled.

(Troy:) I can show you the world
Shining, shimmering, splendid
Tell me, princess, now when did
you last let your heart decide

(Troy:)I can open your eyes
Take you wonder by wonder
Over, sideways, and under
On a magic carpet ride

Troy grabbed Gabi's hand and kissed it as he continued with his solo.

(Troy:)A whole new world
A new fantastic point of view
No one to tell us no or where to go
Or say we're only dreaming

(Gabriella:)A whole new world
A dazzling place I never knew
But when I'm way up here, it's crystal clear
That now I'm in a whole new world with you

(Gabriella:)Unbelievable sights
Indescribable feeling
Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling
Through an endless diamond sky

Looking deeply into each other's eyes, they continued singing the fairy tale-like song.

(Gabriella:) A whole new world
(Troy :) Don't you dare close your eyes
(Gabriella :) A hundred thousand things to see
(Troy :) Hold your breath- it gets better
(Both:)I'm like a shooting star, I've come so far
(Gabriella:)I can't go back to where I used to be

(Troy:) A whole new world
(Gabriella:) Every turn a surprise
(Troy:) With new horizons to pursue
(Gabriella:) Every moment gets better

(Both :) I'll chase them anywhere, there's time to spare, let me share this whole new world with you

(Troy :) A whole new world
(Gabriella :) A whole new world
(Troy :) That's where we'll be
(Gabriella :) That's where we will be
(Troy:) A thrilling change
(Gabriella :) A wondrous place
(Both :) For you and me

The song ended to an eruption of applause. Troy bent down and lightly kissed Gabriella in front of the entire crowd to the sound of catcalls. They both laughed as they exited the performing area. Chad and Taylor came running up to them, Taylor on the brink of jumping up and down in excitement. "You guys were amazing!" she said as she hugged them both.

"It was nothing," Troy said laughing. "I sound better anyway because I have her making it sound incredible." Troy squeezed Gabi's hand, making her blush.

"Hey Troy, the team is in the backyard taking the team picture. We should get back there now as to not keep them waiting any longer," Chad said winking. Troy laughed as he bid farewell to Gabi and Taylor and headed towards his team.

Gabi headed towards the outskirts of the party. She was on cloud nine. This night had been perfect for her. Not only had she won the scholastic decathlon, she had also just begun dating the hottest and nicest guy in the entire school. She leaned up against one of the trees along the sidewalk, just thinking about everything that had happened to her in such a short period of time. She was brought back to reality when she saw a dark figure approaching her. She screamed when the man grabbed her shirt, hoping that it would grab the attention of someone at the party. She felt the cloth of her shirt tear as she tried to escape the intruder's grasp.

(A/N) I'm sure you guys hate me for leaving this at a cliff hanger, but I had to. :-D. For all you who are looking for my Harry Potter story fan fics, I will begin writing those again soon, but I needed something to give myself a break. So hopefully I'll be able to write the other stories I have soon. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter from the world of Disney's High School Musical. Please leave me a review and I will try to answer everyone I get. Thanks for reading. I solemnly swear I am up to no good!
-Honos