Heya all! I know it's been a while (haha, well, I guess that's the understatement of the century :) since I posted my last chapter of ‚Enemies or lovebirds' and you can believe me when I say I intended on posting this way earlier. It's just that it wasn't written down and I had like no time to do anything. First I was in Norway (which was great by the way, I just don't know if anyone's interested in that :) and then I was away for four additional days, then school started again and I've just been way behind on everything else I wanted to do, so you see… I've been pretty busy.
But now I am here again and nothing's gonna stop me this time from writing this down. And I hope you all like it, so I didn't do it for nothing. The thought to it came as I first listened to the song 'First bad habit' by Vanessa Hudgens and so I thought I would make it a songfic. It's different than the stories I wrote before (somehow it's darker) and I hope I did alright. I also don't know if the lyrics are correct, so don't sue me for any mistakes. It would be great if you reviewed! :D
And I need to say one last thing: This story includes a description of a straight A-student. Nothing of it is meant to do any harm. I'm not one to despite everyone who's good at school (you know, I do have the cheek and say that I kinda belong to them) and I would never dream of it to think they don't understand that you need to have fun once in a while. This description is only used on Gabriella's situation and is nothing you can generalize.
And please be aware that each part of the song functions as a separation. Whenever there's a part of the song in-between, some time has passed between the particular blocks of writing.
This chapter is dedicated to my best friends here on Fan Fiction: Anna, Nicole, Sophia and Zoe. You know who you are :D
Disclaimer: I own neither the characters in this one-shot nor the song. It belongs to either Disney or Vanessa Hudgens. The only thing I own is the plot.
Summary:
Gabriella Montez is the usual goody-two-shoed student you know. No escapades, no major faults, no bad habits. None that you would know of, anyways. But what happens every time she's at Troy Bolton's mercy? Troy Bolton, bad boy, player and unchallenged king of East High? Could he be her bad habit?
One-shot: First bad habit
This was wrong. This was wrong in so many ways that they were uncountable. Did you ever feel as if you were doing something absolutely irrational? Did you ever feel as if you didn't know why you were doing it? And did you ever feel happy and upset at the same time about it? If you didn't, you should be happy about it. Because Gabriella Montez sure did and she wasn't pleased with it.
She didn't even know how it had all started. Looking back, the only thing she could remember was that one party. From that evening her whole life had been turned upside down and inside out. And she didn't know how to get everything back to old facts. What made it even more difficult was certainly that she didn't even truly know if she wanted things to go back to how they had been.
Two months ago Gabriella Montez had been nothing more than the goody-two-shoed student you knew. No escapades, no major faults, no bad habits. Being a straight A-student definitely had its benefits. You had nothing to worry about; the teachers took a natural liking to you; you blended in perfectly well with your background.
But there was no denying that there were some drawbacks as well. The friends you had were mostly just as clever as you and didn't understand a thing about letting loose for a while; for most of the time you were buried under piles of homework, essays and projects you had volunteered to do; and the worst one: the guys interested in you weren't more intelligent than a mole and the best looking ones didn't even know you existed.
Seeing as Gabriella never had seen herself as a girl having a boyfriend to this time in High School, she couldn't have cared less about the boy-trouble. It was just too bad that she hadn't exactly fit in the schema of a typical straight A-student from the very beginning. The main points were accurate for her, yes. But there were two things that had never fit her life style and never would. She did have friends who also were into other things than school and working for it.
She had two, to be exact. It was true, Taylor McKessie was just as much into her marks and studying as Gabriella, but she was always one to have fun with. And her other friend, Sharpay Evans, well, there was nothing that would fit her less than the description of a nerd. Blonde, loud and sparkling, she had throughout shown more interest in drama than any other school subject.
And Gabriella liked to blame those two for the situation she found herself currently in. If they hadn't stringed her along to that one faithful party, then her life would never have changed. Well, of course it would have at some point, but not this fast and certainly not this drastically. This particular change was the second thing not fitting her life style. There was one good- looking boy interested in her. And it wasn't just anybody. No, it was Troy Bolton.
Troy Bolton, crowned with success every time it came to girls, bad boy, player and unchallenged king of East High and officially the best looking student a school had ever laid its eyes on. Gabriella cringed at the thought of him. How the hell had she gotten into his eyeshot? What the hell had she gotten herself into? All she knew was that it had started at this party.
Had she known what would happen, she would have never accepted her friends' invitation to come along. She would have never turned up, no matter what Sharpay would have threatened her with. But she hadn't known. And so nothing had prevented what was to come.
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Overly loud-played music was blasting from the big stereo boxes, safely hidden in a darker corner of the room. The furniture had been put out of the way, so that there was a dance floor available for the mass of people giving into the sweet temptation of the beat coursing through them. Pushing through the crowd, Gabriella and her best friends made their way into the living room, looking around for any familiar faces. Gabriella and Taylor were considered very studious people, yes, but their steady party attending and their friendship with Sharpay had entailed consequences.
They were known by more than only a handful people and it wasn't rare that they would end up with different people at every party, plainly having a good time, prejudices and social walls forgotten for the moment. And normally they were thankful for that. But right now Gabriella didn't really know what to think of Sharpay's antics to mingle with people far off her own and Taylor's social status.
"What?!", she protested, helplessly following Sharpay to the other side of the room. "No way! You know that's totally out of the question!" Throwing a desperate look to Taylor, she tried to make the blonde see sense. "It may be that you hang out with him regularly, but that doesn't mean that he'd want to be seen with me and Taylor!" Her brunette friend nodded in agreement. The person in question was Troy Bolton. As soon as they had arrived, Sharpay had announced to them that they were going to try and find Troy and his friends. Taylor and Gabriella had nearly choked on the air they were breathing.
"What the hell? You can't be serious about that, can you?" Both hadn't wanted to believe it. Sharpay really had gone crazy. But the blonde had only cut them off and shaken her head. "Don't chicken out now! He's been asking who you two are since he saw you at Baylor's party last month. I told him and he seemed to be interested. At least in our Gabriella here!" Her gaze had found its way to Gabriella's face and she had chuckled at the expression it showed. "Aw, come on, Gabs! You need to loosen up a bit and have fun every now and then! And there's nothing wrong with making out just for fun, you know?" She had giggled unashamedly.
Gabriella's mouth had fallen open as she heard her friend's declaration. And it hadn't helped that Taylor had seemed to be of the same opinion as her. "Sharpay Evans! Taylor McKessie! I cannot believe you! Are you telling me I should go and make out with Troy Bolton, the golden boy of East High, just because he's a little bit interested? You know him! One moment he's infatuated with something, and the next he's already forgotten what he's been thinking about!" Her cheeks had grown red with embarrassment. "And I'm so not going to line up next to all the other girls he's been with. How many were there again? One hundred? Two hundred? Even more? Please, guys! That boy is worse than any other I've ever met!"
Taylor and Sharpay had giggled. "So what? A little make-out session isn't one of the seven sins! Especially not if it is with one of the hottest boys on this planet! And nobody said that he's got something like that in mind. Maybe he just wants to… talk?", Sharpay had seemed to find great amusement in the fact that Gabriella was refusing to even meet Troy unwaveringly. Gabriella had snorted. "Please! The day that boy wants to meet a girl to talk to her is the day I will join the drama club!" Taylor had laughed. She knew only too well that Gabriella was insurmountable stage frightened. There was no way she would ever do a drama production.
Sharpay had frowned. "I've told you ages ago you should join. I don't get why you keep refusing so blatantly." Then her mood had brightened again. "But let's not bother with that right now. Let's go find Troy and his friends!" Gabriella had nearly choked again. Had Sharpay listened to anything she had just said? Obviously she had not, because the blonde had just turned around and hurried inside. So now, here they were, Gabriella still trying to talk Sharpay out of her mission. And this time she was being backed up by Taylor. Seemingly her dark-skinned friend had finally come to her senses and realized that meeting pupils from the highest step of the social ladder wasn't the best idea Sharpay had ever had.
But, as usual, Sharpay didn't listen in the slightest. And now it seemed that she had finally found the ones she had been looking for. Impatiently tugging on Gabriella's and Taylor's sleeves, she started to make her way across the room. Gabriella threw Taylor one last exasperated look and then followed the blonde with a sigh. Nervously trying to make her skirt seem at least a little bit longer than it actually was – the mini skirt had been another crazy idea of Sharpay's -, Gabriella jerked the garment down slightly, only too discover that the action exposed a good bit of her stomach. She growled lowly under her breath. Sharpay truly was wicked for making her wear this outfit.
And then there was no time to think any more. Skidding to an abrupt halt, Sharpay stopped next to a group of boys and girls that seemed to form their own circle. It didn't exactly look as if other people were allowed into their midst. That impression, though, changed the moment the apparent entertainer, a boy with bushy brown hair, of the group noticed the arrival of the three girls. "Sharpay!", he greeted her and the heads of the others flew in the direction he was looking. Gabriella noticed the hostile glare of Melissa Rancher, head of the cheerleader squad. Obviously she had noticed that Gabriella and Taylor didn't belong to the people she normally socialized with.
The others seemed to notice, too, but one didn't seem to mind. Gabriella could read it in his eyes; they were directed towards her – and only her – and they seemed to lock with hers the moment she dared to look up at him. They were crystal blue, just like the sea and for a moment she didn't remember she could swim. She drowned in them. She couldn't detect any resentment or haughtiness; just pure interest and … some kind of longing. She shivered involuntarily and her movement caused him to break his gaze. He turned to Sharpay: "Lovely to see you with us. Doesn't happen often now, does it?"
Gabriella couldn't decide if she liked the tone he used. He sounded like he didn't really care; as if he normally just put up with her because some of his friend had taken to like her. But it could be that it was her imagination playing tricks on her mind. After all, Sharpay hung out with them a great deal – which was why Gabriella didn't understand his comment on her meeting up with them being a rare thing; maybe he just didn't notice her most of the time – and he had noticed with whom she hang around if she wasn't with them.
But she didn't get the time to ponder over the question much longer. Troy had turned back to her. "Gabriella, right?" The addressed brunette cursed herself. Why did she have to have a blackout exactly then when being spoken to? Not being able to do anything about it, she nodded. His mouth that had been pressed into a thin line – it didn't seem like he had enjoyed the party until now – curled up into a grin. Another shiver ran down Gabriella's spine. "Dance with me." It wasn't a question, it was a command. But Gabriella didn't even think about disobeying. Something about his eyes and his whole demeanour captivated her. And it wasn't willing to let go.
Too stunned to actually say anything she watched him walk towards her and drag her away from her and his friends. On their way to the dance floor he leaned down to her and whispered into his ear: "Are you ever going to say something? Or did the cat get your tongue?" His hot breath against her neck made her tremble again. He laughed quietly and his shaking next to her set Gabriella's body on fire. Great, he really was hard to resist. The rumours about his skills in persuading girls to fall at his feet were true. And it seemed like Gabriella was the next victim that would fall for his charm.
And she prepared the way for him all too willingly. Reacting to his touch like someone who had been given the lifesaving elixir from some destroying illness, she only too happily obliged him and his advances of kissing her as soon they had reached an empty space on the dance floor. Damn it, why did he have this influence on her? Until now she had never felt the need to be that near to someone. And now here she was, begging silently for his mouth on hers and responding to him as soon as he granted her wish.
Her mind was blank; she simply stopped thinking about what she was doing. Until she felt his hands reaching for his waist and prying his lips from hers long enough to ask: "You wanna get out of here?" Her body froze. Did she? Did she want to search for a secluded place to finish what they had started here? She didn't know. Like a scalded cat her mind began to think again. "I don't even know you!", she demurred. "Well, you do know that I'm Troy Bolton, so called golden boy of East High, don't you?" Gabriella nodded her head, not knowing what this would lead to. "Trust me; there isn't much to know about me beside that."
That was unexpected. Was he admitting himself that he was shallow? Gabriella couldn't quite wrap her mind around that. "Well, there's this little thing that you use girls for your fun and discard them as soon as you get bored of them.", she argued back, somewhat not knowing why she even bothered to debate with him. The right thing to do would be to bolt this very minute, before she could be swayed to do something really stupid. The bad thing was that she didn't care about the right thing. Troy smirked a little and bent back down to kiss her, leaving her breathless. "And you care about that?", he taunted. Gabriella swallowed. Hard. It was difficult to think as long he was this near to her. Finally she shook her head. So what? She wasn't looking for a relationship. She had enough to do with school and everything. And Sharpay and Taylor were right. A make-out session wasn't one of the seven sins.
She looked up to see Troy grinning down at her. "Then what are we waiting for?" With one last look over her shoulder, she shrugged and followed Troy outside. The cold night air hit her skin at several places, for her outfit didn't cover very much of her arms and legs. Shivering, she found herself back in Troy's warm arms as soon as they had rounded the corner together. Pushed up against the wall, the consideration of getting a cold fled her mind once she felt Troy's mouth against her own. Warming up to him once again, she pressed herself into him, bringing him to moan slightly.
Smiling, he released her lips shortly. "And maybe you're much more interesting than the other girls I met until now? Who knows? I just might decide to keep you around a little longer." He grinned again at that thought and his eyes lit up. Gabriella's breath nearly came to a stop. Reminding herself that she needed the air, she inhaled briefly, before she took the initiative. She really didn't want to think about what his statement meant for her. But she couldn't stop one thought striking her. So what if she wasn't looking for something on the long term? What if he was looking for somebody who would keep him entertained longer than only a short period of time? How the hell was she going to get out of this?
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Turn it off, turn it on
Like the vibrate on your phone
It turned out to be impossible to get out of it. As soon as Gabriella's mind had started working appropriately the next morning, she instantly had settled for a panic-mood. She hadn't done that, had she? Surely there would be a simple explanation as to why she had the scandalous memory of making out with Troy Bolton in her mind. She had only acquired the truth of the image very slowly. As soon as she had done it, she had screamed. And she had woken up Taylor and Sharpay who had been sleeping in the same room as her. Gradually, the full memory of the evening before had come back.
And it hadn't exactly helped. The only good that it had done was that they had been able to get to school just in time, because all three of them had failed to hear the alarm clock buzzing. On the car ride, Gabriella had been freaking out. "I can't possibly go in there! The whole school will know what I've done! What have I been thinking?" She had reconsidered that thought for a minute. Then she had seemed to have had an inspiration. "What the hell have you two been thinking?!", she had accused her best friends. "How could you have let me do that? My whole life's going to be miserable! I'll always be known as the hideous nerd that thought she could have a shot with Troy Freaking Bolton!"
Taylor and Sharpay had had enough. "Oh god, Gabriella, stop it! No one will think anything about you! Most of them were too drunk to even notice and the others will simply think you've been charmed by him just as every other girl at this school!", Sharpay had told her, trying to speak as quietly as she could, for she was still nursing her headache she had received from drinking one beer too much. That hadn't had any effect on Gabriella at all. "That's exactly my point! Just as every other girl at this school! What the hell have I been thinking?" Taylor had huffed annoyed. "You're repeating yourself, girl! And I can tell you what you were thinking! You were letting loose for once in a while, that's what's up! And I wouldn't freak if I were you! He probably doesn't even remember you anymore!"
That was something that Gabriella had known. What she hadn't known was that she had a problem with that. She hadn't realized it until Taylor had told her, but something had been bugging her about that fact. And then she remembered why. Troy Bolton was the best kisser that had ever touched her. The fact that he was looking extremely handsome wasn't making things better and also not the fact that he had promised her something. She hadn't remembered it right away, but as she had thought about it she could recollect that he had told her something as they had separated paths after what had seemed like hours. "I think this isn't the last time we'll see each other, Gabriella.", he had said. And it had made her shiver … with anticipation.
But in the morning it had only freaked her out more. She had been relieved all the more when she had entered the school building shortly after her conversation with Taylor and Sharpay and had found that actually no one was paying attention to her. Not the cheerleader, not the nerds, not the skaters, not the basketball players, not even Troy himself. And Gabriella hadn't known why, but it had stung her. She had made it through the rest of the day by spending as much time occupying herself with studying as possible and trying not to think about Troy too much. And it had pleased her beyond belief that she had in fact managed to get her entire homework done before she wasted another thought on him.
She had been all the more surprised when she had been sitting in the school's library in the afternoon, trying to get some information for a school project she had been working on and found herself in the situation of having Troy walking towards her. There had been no mistaken that he had been there for her. No one else was there that late. He had waited patiently until she had raised her head to meet his gaze, before he had pulled her up from her seat and backed her up against a bookshelf. "Do you know that I've been searching everywhere for you?" His question had made her heart flutter. She had shaken her head in denial and finally plugged up the courage to say something. "There's no reason for you to search for me!" Her voice had taken an edge of something she hadn't quite been able to figure out herself.
Once again she had found Troy grinning down at her. "You think so? I've already told you we would see each other again!" Not wanting to waste their time on talking anymore, he had captured her lips in a heated kiss and she had surrendered. There had been no point in denying that she had yearned for this kiss the whole day and now she had finally gotten it. To complain would have been kind of lying, she had figured. As they had parted again, she had looked up at the big clock hanging in the library. A quarter of an hour had passed. Without so much as throwing another look at her, Troy had left the library, leaving Gabriella behind, standing there dumbfounded. A week would pass until he would speak to her again.
Call me up, wanna talk
Then you freeze me
It had been a month and a half since the incident in the library had happened. But it hadn't been the only one. Troy would come to her whenever he pleased and it wouldn't be on a regular basis. Days could pass by, sometimes even a week, on some days it wasn't even two hours. And as much as Gabriella Montez had fought against it, she hadn't been able to avoid the inevitable. She had fallen for him. She hadn't told him; of course not. But she suspected that he knew, for every time he walked out on her he would wear a smug grin on his face, the very same he wore when he and his team had won a basketball game. And in a way he had won a game. He had played, he had made an effort and he had scored. And Gabriella didn't know what she should think about it.
He had her wrapped around his little finger and he knew it. At one time she had been studying. Studying for a math test that was only a week away. And it wasn't like Gabriella to start revising the material only days before she had to take a test. But she had been distracted; distracted by somebody who could get her attention with just the snip of one of his fingers. And it seemed like he wasn't going to leave her in piece. As her cell phone had started ringing, Gabriella hadn't even thought twice about picking up. But as she had heard the voice at the other end of the line, she had nearly let go of her phone. In the nick of time she had regained her grip on it and had asked incredulously: "How the hell have you gotten my phone number?"
The answering laugh had let her heart swell. "I have my sources!", he had told her. Then his laughter had died abruptly. "What are you doing?" Gabriella had frozen with shock. He had had never – never ever – before expressed any interest in what she was doing when she wasn't with him. And she had really doubted that he had actually wanted to know. "Why?", she had challenged him, letting her heart being taken over with hope. Maybe he had finally come around to be willing to drop his playboy antics? But as soon as the hope had invaded her heart, her mind had crushed it. Don't be silly. It's just you. Why would he give up anything just to meet your childish hopes?
She had been devastated that Troy had proven her mind right. Instead of answering her question, he had suddenly let go of all polite manners and told her to come down. Shaken with surprise by the sudden change of demeanour, she had looked out of the window to see him sitting in his car. He had looked up and seen her at the window, breaking the connection of their cell phones. There had been no need to talk to her anymore. She would come down and he had known it.
It's the same when you're gone
Keep me guessing what you want
But my heart says it's you who can please me
Their trip hadn't taken long. He had brought her to a secluded place outside of Albuquerque and they had done what they always did when they met up. There was no talking involved and sometimes Gabriella wished that she would have the strength to stop what was going on. But she didn't. And she couldn't count on him to stop it; she didn't even know what he wanted. And she never asked, for all thoughts were blown out of the window whenever he started to touch her in any way.
That left her to think about it every time she wasn't with him. She had been having a lack of sleep for several nights before, always trying to figure out what he really wanted from her. Was she just something to keep him occupied? She wouldn't put it past him, but he did have other possibilities than coming to her. And it wasn't exactly as if she was on the same stage of the social ladder as him. So what did he want her for? Her looks? Certainly not; she had never seen herself as pretty. So there really was no reason for him to want her. And there's no reason for you to want him! Her mind kept reminding her of that. But she had always brushed that thought aside. She knew that. But that didn't mean her heart did, too.
I get pushed to extremes
and I should know what it means
But I can't bear the game to be over
It had been two days after the math test that she had realized another reason for her to break off whatever she had with Troy. He held her back from the things that had been the most important things in her old life. Since they had started their liaison – Gabriella didn't know what to call it -, she had seen less and less of her friends. It wasn't unusual that she spent the afternoon with Troy and on those she didn't meet up with him, she had to catch up on the school things she hadn't been able to do. And not even that was functioning properly, what was proven by her math test.
She had sat there in shock, starring at the test she had been given back five minutes ago. It had been a C. She hadn't known how that could have happened. She was good at Maths. Or rather, had been good at it. It seemed as if she had been too occupied with other things to revise accurately. Heaving a heavy sigh, she had starred at the blackboard. She had caught the look of her teacher who had shaken his head at her. "Miss Montez, I would like to talk to you after class. Please stay inside after the bell has rung." She had heaved another sigh. It seemed like that was something that she did constantly during the last days.
And so she had dragged herself towards the teacher's desk, as soon as every other student had filled out, happily or devastated discussing the results of their class test. "Miss Montez, is something wrong? This is the lowest grade you've ever gotten from me – and as I dare say from any other teacher as well. And you seem to often be absent lately. Is it something you would like to discuss with me?" Gabriella had starred at him in utter surprise. Had her behaviour been that apparent? Obviously it had.
Quickly she had shaken her head. "Oh, it's nothing, I can assure you. It's just so hard to keep up with everything, you know?" Her teacher had bought the lie with an understanding nod. "Oh yes, I do understand. Just don't let your school work disarray your health, alright?" Gabriella had faked a smile and agreed rather quickly. "I won't, I promise." Her teacher had dismissed her with a noticeable feeling of relief, missing the look of dejection on his student's face.
On her way to lunch Gabriella had pondered over what she should do. Of course she knew that this meant she should stop the liaison with Troy, but somehow she couldn't quite bring herself to do it. He was the reason that she was so tired lately and there was no doubt that he wore her out, but otherwise he was the reason she kept going. She didn't know how exactly she had managed to get through her boring life before he had taken an interest in her. Troy spiced her life up; he was the something she had always known was missing, but had never quite discovered what it was. And now she wasn't ready to give it up. He wasn't her addiction, but something close to that. He was like her first bad habit.
When your moves never change
Only got myself to blame
'Cos I fall for it over and over
And now here she was, two months after that faithful party, once against pressed up against the wall of some house at another party. She really hadn't intended on coming, but he had left her no choice. He had once told her briefly that he didn't particular enjoy going to those king of parties and she had never questioned him about it. Their relationship – if you could call it that – just wasn't like that. They didn't talk; they didn't share their feelings or anything in general. What they shared was completely physical and nothing more. Taylor had commented on that on one occasion. She had compared their relationship to an abusive one. But Gabriella knew that it wasn't like that. He didn't hurt her – not intentionally, at least, and not physically – and he didn't force her to stay with him. She knew that she was free to walk away anytime.
But she couldn't. And every time she tried to he always seemed to find a way to capture her once more. He knew just as well as her that if she really wanted to stop it then she would be able to. But she didn't want to. Not enough. And that was the reason why she was in her current situation, anticipating Troy's every touch. He had requested for her to be here, as he would be bored stiff otherwise if she wasn't there to keep his mind of things. Keeping his thing of minds didn't really fit. It was more to make out with her. But this time Gabriella's mind wasn't really in it. It was still lingering on the consequences Troy had brought with him. Her school work was suffering from her spending time with him and her social life was coming near a still stand. She had often wondered how nobody ever discovered Troy spending his time with his latest fling – her -, but she supposed that he had his ways of keeping things secretive.
Troy finally noticed her hesitance. "What's wrong?" His voice wasn't as impatient as it had been so often before and Gabriella was glad about it. She didn't know if she could do this if she already knew he wouldn't be listening. "Troy, this has to stop. We have to stop. I can't keep up with classes anymore and I haven't seen my friends in ages. Hell, I spend all my time with you and I don't even know why. Why are you still with me? I'm a nerd, I'm standing on the lowest step of the social ladder and you, well, you're the king of East High. You could have every girl. So why me? Why me, Troy?" She had uttered each word separately, her breath still hitching from their previous making out.
She saw annoyance flashing through Troy's eyes. "What's brought this up again?" He emphasized the word 'again' as if he was fed up with her constant questioning. Gabriella shrugged helplessly. He snorted disbelievingly. "You know as well as I do that nothing's keeping you here. So if you're that worried about all that stuff, why don't you just go? Or wait, I've got an even better idea.", he added as an afterthought. "Why don't I just go? If you're questioning every step you and I take, there's really no point in keeping this up." Huffing with irritation, he turned around and strutted back to the party.
Gabriella watched his retreating back with growing devastation. Could she really go through with it? Could she really stand never kissing him again? Would she be able to stand to see him go back to changing his girls every week? And she would have to stand by silently, being completely helpless. No, she couldn't. In a matter of seconds her mind was made up and her body reacted. "Troy, wait up, please!" She flew after him, her voice bringing him to a halt. "You know I didn't mean it like that!"
In an instant Troy was turning back around to her, catching her in his strong arms. She looked up to him, only to be greeted with a smug grin. For a short moment she had to close her eyes. Of course. Of course it would be like that. What had she been thinking? Why did she always have to fall for all his moves? And it wasn't like he used a different one every time. No, she always fell for the same. And she couldn't even blame him. The only one to blame was her.
Damn it, why couldn't she look through him by now? He had never intended on leaving like that; he had known she would be begging him to stay with her. And she had fallen for it once again. She just hoped that there would be a day when she would have the guts to walk away from him, out of his life, to never see him again. But somehow she really doubted that.
You're like my first bad habit
I can't live without it
I can't give you up, give you up
And even though you're trouble
I come back for double
I can't say enough is enough
I'm a part of you, you're a part of me
And I know it's wrong, but I can't get free
You're like my first bad habit
How am I gonna give you up?
"Gabriella! Wait!" Taylor's voice reached Gabriella's ear as soon as her brunette friend turned the corner. Gabriella turned around and smiled at her best friend. "Taylor! Long time, no see!" She was rewarded with a disapproving frown. "That's hardly my fault!" Gabriella lowered her head. Taylor was right. It wasn't her fault that Gabriella never had time anymore. It was just that she couldn't seem to get her priorities right. She knew that her friends and her family should always come first, especially since it wasn't even her boyfriend taking up her time, but a mere hormone-driven boy.
"I know, I know!", she sighed and Taylor regarded her friend carefully. "You don't look too good, Gabriella. Do you even sleep at night?" Gabriella looked up at her like a criminal caught in the act. "Don't tell me that Troy's keeping you up!" Taylor sounded shocked, to say the least. Gabriella quickly shook her head. It wasn't so much Troy who was keeping her up, but the fact that she couldn't stop thinking about him and their situation. Taylor wasn't fooled that easily. "But it's got something to do with him, hasn't it?" She wasn't going to give up that quickly. Gabriella sensed it and nodded in defeat. "I just can't help it, Tay!"
Taylor knew that. She had watched Gabriella and Troy since she had observed them vanish from the party two months ago. And she wasn't happy with what she saw. "You need to stop this, Gaby. It's not going to get you anywhere. He's trouble. He'll break your heart in the end, you know that." Yes, Gabriella knew that. That didn't mean that she was going to listen to Taylor. "I know that, Tay. But I can't see myself breaking what I have with him. Well, I won't have him for long. But I have him for now. And I want to take what I get. I just can't give him up." Taylor shook her head, knowing that she was beaten. "Hey, just know that we're always here for you, okay?"
Gabriella managed a true smile. "I know, Tay. And I really appreciate that." She gave her friend a quick hug. "Gabriella!" Taylor tensed up immediately. "I better get going. See you!" With one last nod to the person standing behind her she disappeared. Gabriella turned around and was faced with a mildly amused looking Troy. "Did she tell you again that I'm nothing but trouble?" For a short moment Gabriella thought about denying it, but she knew there was no point. He'd figure out she was lying anyways. So she simply shrugged. And he grinned once again. Yes, he meant trouble. But she would always come back to him, no matter what his reputation was.
You're the worst, you're the best
Something different from the rest
It's a fact seeing you's never easy
"Oh my god! Have you seen the new boy? He's so cute!" The mumblings of excited girls could be heard all over the school. The boy in question was Aaron McCarty and there really was no denying that he did look cute. Gabriella encountered him the first time as she stood in front of her locker, trying to remember what she had wanted there first place. "Excuse me?" The voice was pleasant and Gabriella looked up to meet an amazing pair of green eyes. "Are you talking to me?", she asked, taken by surprise. The boy nodded and extended his hand. "Aaron McCarty." A smile spread over her face. "So, you're the boy they're all talking about!" Aaron had the decency to blush at her words. "Well, yeah I guess."
Gabriella giggled. He really was cute. "And what did you want?" He was starring at her and then blinking suddenly. "Hu? What did you ask? Sorry, I think I spaced out there for a moment.", he admitted sheepishly and Gabriella smiled. "No problem. Did you have a reason why you wanted to talk to me?" His eyes widened as if only now remembering that he had wanted something. "Oh yeah!" He hit his forehead with one of his hands. "I think I was going to ask you if that's my locker next to yours." Gabriella looked at the locker. "If your locker number is 2034, then I would say it is."
Aaron looked relieved. "Thank god! I've been searching for it since I started school this morning. This school is just so big." Gabriella laughed. She knew the feeling. He walked around her and dialled his combination. "I guess we'll see each other more often then.", he told her and she smiled back at him. "I do think so, yes." He grinned as if the prospect was making his school life a lot more bearable.
"Say, do you have a boyfriend?" His sudden question astounded her. "Why do you ask?" Aaron pointed to someone behind her. "Because there's this really frightening-looking boy starring at you and me in a way as if he wants to rip my head off any second." Gabriella spun around fast enough to see Troy glaring at her, before he vanished in the crowd. Her shoulders sacked down. For a moment she had forgotten him. But the quickest of looks at him and she was reminded why she was still with him. He wasn't able to have a real relationship, yes. In that point he definitely was worse than every other guy she knew. But on the other hand he had something no one else had. Her heart. And that made him the best she would ever meet.
She turned her thoughts back to Aaron. "Well, not exactly. But I'm not really available at the moment, if you know what I mean." A confused look crossed his face, but before she had time to explain it to him, she felt her cell phone vibrating in her pocket. Someone had sent her a text message and there was no doubt who that someone was. See you in the library. She sent an apologetic look to Aaron. "I suppose I'm off then." She grabbed her back and turned, heading towards her meeting point. "See you later!", she called over her shoulder and tried to shake the image of Aaron standing in the hallway like a lost puppet out of her mind. He would have discarded her anyways; as soon as he found out she was a nerd.
Two minutes later she entered the library, finding Troy in the most secluded corner of the room. In a matter of seconds he had jumped up from his seat and pressed her against a bookshelf. "Were you flirting with him?" Gabriella swallowed nervously. She knew that he wasn't really jealous; he just liked to have no competition about the girls he claimed. She shook her head. "Good!", he growled in her ear, having her shivering again due to the hot breath streaking her neck. Gabriella sighed before he captured her lips. Seeing him was never easy. Normally she didn't care, but right now she hated it.
Love my style, hate my friends
No, the conflict never ends
How much worse can it get when you tease me?
Their make-out session was over. For now, at least. Right now, they were both heading towards lunch, he hurrying along the corridors, she following a few metres behind. As they slipped into the cafeteria, no one would ever have guessed what they had been doing only a few minutes ago. Watching him walk towards his friends, Gabriella sighed upset, knowing that he would never eat lunch with her. There had been one time she had dared to ask if he would ever come and sit with her. She had never done it again.
The fierceness he hadn't been able to keep out of his voice as he had told her that he couldn't stand her friends – he didn't even like Sharpay, although she hung out with his group regularly – had been enough to shut her up. The only good her question had brought was that he had finally told her why he still was interested in her. He liked her style. Not only her sense of fashion – up to the day she had never really noticed what she was wearing, but obviously Troy liked how she dressed -, but also her demeanour of getting along with people had intrigued him. That, however, didn't mean that he could stand the most important part of her life, her friends.
As she sat down on her lunch table, she sighed again. There was one thing she would never do for Troy and that was giving up her friends. They had always been there for her, even when no one else was and she wasn't going to leave them now. They were the only part of her life that hadn't changed until now and for her they were more than friends. They were the ones that seemed to be her escape from everything, should Troy really break her heart one day. Yes, it certainly caused a conflict, but she wasn't going to give that up. It couldn't get any worse anyways. So what if he decided to tease her about them?
And I know and I know and I know and I know
The way we go around
Can't put my first bad habit down
And I know and I know and I know and I know
The way we go around
I just can't give you up
The fact that she even had to think about all of this - giving up her friends, choosing between staying with Troy and let things the way they were or give him up and try to bring the normality back into her life – told her that this whole affair wasn't right for her. That he wasn't right for her. But she knew that she couldn't put him down. His touch was intoxicating. His kisses were heavenly. To have him the way she had him was priceless. And she would never be able to say that enough was enough.
You're like my first bad habit
I can't live without it
I can't give you up, give you up
And even though you're trouble
I come back for double
I can't say enough is enough
I'm a part of you, you're a part of me
And I know it's wrong, but I can't get free
You're like my first bad habit
How am I gonna give you up?
Gabriella really didn't know what she should do anymore. She knew she wouldn't be able to give him up. Never. But she also knew that it was dangerous close to heartbreak to keep doing this. It wasn't like Troy didn't like her. He never said it out-loud, but he had different ways to express it and she had her ways to read his body language. Gabriella knew that they would never be together as a real couple in a decent relationship and that what she had was all that she could ask for at the moment. And she had long ago decided to take it. She wasn't going to go back on her decision now. She would take what she got. And she wasn't going to lose hope. While there was life, there was always hope. And maybe – just maybe – Troy Bolton wasn't that much of a lost case as everyone else saw him.
A.N.: I know, I know, I know. Troy really seems like an arse in this story. I just wanted to try something different from what I usually write. But please take notice of the fact that I'm a big Troyella fan and that I hate them not being the couple they normally are. This was just something I had to write sooner or later… call it a kiss of muse or something like that :)
Alright, guys! This was it, my second one-shot. Loved it? Hated it? Tell me your opinion through reviewing. That's the cue where you go and press that cute little grey (or is it blue? I never figured it out :) button down there. :D I really hope you had as much fun reading it as I had while writing. I'm so glad that I finally get this out, because I really didn't know when to do it. I'm really sorry if I took way too long in your opinion. But school has started again (I know, I don't mean the summer holidays, I mean the fall holidays or autumn, whichever you may call it) and therefore it's really, really difficult to get anything besides school work done. I don't have as much time to write… which means even less than I had now, because we're starting on different class tests. But I'll do my very best to get a story up once a while and maybe I'll start a story-to-update in a few weeks, but we'll see.
Until then I would be more than happy to read the reviews you may hopefully write. Constructive critic is just as welcome as compliments or suggestions about how to improve my writing. I also hope that I have my beta-reader profile up by the time I post this, so if you need a beta reader don't hesitate to contact me and I'll do my very best to answer you as fast as possible.
And I just wanted to say sorry once again for taking down 'Enemies or lovebirds', but as you can read in my profile: It's for a very good purpose and the second I realize it's not going to work out like I want it to (and trust me, I really do want for it to work out) I'll put it up on here again.
And what I also want to say is: I'm so sorry for letting you guys wait so long until you get an answer to your PMs. But as I've already said currently I have absolutely no time to do anything and I'm really sorry for that. I promise that I'll do my very best to change that, but I can't promise that it'll be crowned with success. But thanks for your patience.
Until then,
oxlovelyxo
Lena