Chapter One ~ December 14th 2018 (11:00pm) Boston, Following: (Gabriella)

Gabby noticed every detail, especially the fact that the place seemed too quiet. The apartment seemed quiet. She knew she'd find all the occupants asleep.

The light that lit up the apartment stairwell flickered, and Gabby shivered. It was December and last week's snow was already forming ice on the ground. Gabby's breath formed a cloud around her face in the darkness. She wondered what life was like elsewhere. She looked up thoughtfully, although there were two many clouds in the sky to see the stars, but Gabby knew they were there above her.

She inhaled softly and shivered again. The night air seeped through her cheaply purchased cloth coat with fraying edges. Underneath the coat, she wore several thin sweaters, none of which did any good this time of night. She had very little money to afford anything new. There was no money to be had. Gabby had recently been fired from her research institute job. Gabby had been job searching but hadn't come up with much. She was employed as a receptionist at a local law firm last week but was finding she hated it. There had to be more then this, she could feel it deep inside.

Her fiancé fought with her over how they were going to pay for the wedding. She hated that too. She hated work, and she hated life at home. She couldn't stand that she had nowhere to go. Gabby found solace in a local bar near her apartment, where she went every evening after work for a drink or two. She watched the sports channel in the bar every few nights hoping to see Troy Bolton or anyone else she might know elsewhere. Some days were better then others.

Tonight she was Lucky. A small broadcast about the Knicks game earlier in the evening had flashed a shot of Troy Bolton and several Knicks players shaking hands after their big win. Gabby had hiccuped at the sight and tried to stare down her beer, without an emotional breakdown. It hadn't worked well, and she had been slightly depressed. The beer as it turns out couldn't console her. After paying her tab, she stared at the screen long after the game coverage had passed.

It was late; Gabby knew that. She'd gone out after work for a few drinks because today was her birthday. Gabby was 28 years old today, about 10 years ago she spent her birthday with the man she loved. She remembered Troy fondly, and couldn't believe what he had been like when they had met several years prior. Her fiance Evan was supposed to meet her here for drinks tonight at least in a celebratory manner. He never showed up. She figured he was back at the apartment, too tired, or too drunk to come out and enjoy.

Tonight however she had a couple drinks by herself at the bar. She had been asked by a nice gentleman to dance, but had refused the offer. As nice as he appeared she felt it would be wrong to accept a dance without her fiancé present. The man she thought she loved was supposedly at home. Looking at her apartment in the dark she wished she had taken the offer to dance. She might have had some fun, it being her birthday and all. What a grim life this was turning out to be.

The weather forecaster mentioned snow was possible tonight. Gabby loved snow. She loved the way it fell, and the way the whole world seemed to go quiet underneath it. The snow glistened, and it shone, and the world was soft and white. Tonight however Gabby hopes sank as she saw the clouds overhead shift a little.

It would probably rain instead, she thought. She was getting colder by the minute, even though the alcohol kept her slightly warm. She hurried up the steps, carefully clinging to the raining to avoid slippery ice and puddles. She reached her door but turned instead to the railing. Gabby's eyes drifted across the glowing streets below wanting more. There was more to be had elsewhere. In her imagination the gentleman from the bar spun her around and she was flying.

Gabby's hand shook as she turned the key and pushed open the apartment door. The glow from the hallway threw shadows across the room, thus illuminating the couch. The garish light stunned Gabby for a moment. The couch was draped with a crochet blanket of which her mother in law to be had sent last winter. Gabby thought it was rather ugly, but her fiancé Evan had them display it a few weeks out of every year around Christmas, or when his mother visited.

Christmas wasn't for another week or so, and the ugly blanket had again made its appearance. When Gabby shut the door she was surprised at how dark the apartment became. A small post it note of paper drifted from the door to the floor, escaping Gabby's attention.

Gabby felt at ease with the dark and the warmth that emanated from the heater. Gabby leaned against the back of the door and took a deep breath. She let out a sigh of relief. Seeing as Evan was probably asleep, she would not have a fight with him tonight. She removed her coat and hung it along with her purse and briefcase from the hat tree in the corner. She flicked on the small desk light in the living room.

She was now face to face with several pictures of Gavin, Evan's child from his first marriage. The little boy had been dumped on her the second his first wife walked out. The adorable three years old was a handful, but most of the time Gabby didn't mind. Gabby had always wanted kids of her own, but Evan felt one was enough. Evan didn't appreciate his child and preferred instead to leave him under Gabby's care.

They fought about this many times, and Gabby finally gave up. Sighing, as she past the pictures, Gabby finally realized how tired she was. She removed her shoes and wandered across the soft carpet, towards the back bedrooms. She flicked off the light as she left the living room. The door on her left was closed, which surprised Gabby. That was Gavin's room, and he couldn't sleep with the door closed. That was a fight for another night. It probably meant Gavin and Evan were together in the big bed and she was resigned to the couch. Gabby walked further down the hallway, and into her own bedroom.

December 14th 2018 (11:00 pm) New York, Following: (Troy)

The final seconds of the Knicks game sounded. Troy stood up from his court-side seat and cheered loudly. He loved the Knicks. The Knicks had won the game, their game was amazing. Troy however wasn't surprised. Some players he had recently befriended trotted over to shake his hand as he congratulated them on such a great game. Troy had met them during the marketing and management team induction, several weeks prior. Even with all the excitement, Troy couldn't help but be slightly depressed. Today was Gabriella's birthday and he hadn't seen her in several years, give or take a few years and a few life style changes. He had stopped drinking, and had gone to AA meetings to help him conquer his need to drink. There were no other vices, at least he hadn't found one that stuck like drinking had.

The last time he had seen her was New Years Eve about 5 years ago, and he'd been drunk. He knew that had been a mistake. He couldn't recall what he had said to her, be he knew it wasn't nice. She had slapped him, and he had deserved that. He knew deep down that he had, even thinking about it hurt.

At that point, an injury in college had benched him, and he had missed a shot at playing professionally. He had become a heavy drinker out of college and had fallen into a slump. There had been a period of a few years where he barely spoke to anyone. A few friends from High school and college had come to his rescue. With his feet back on the ground, a steady job and a somewhat upscale apartment, Troy's future was looking up. At least Troy could sleep when the ghosts were at bay. Although he still saw her sometimes in his dreams. Even nightmares are still real sometimes.

Troy waved at his friends as they left for the dressing room amidst their fellow teammates. As soon as his friends were out of sight his shoulders went back to a slumped position. He had been depressed and slightly reclusive lately. Aside from his marketing and sports management job he spent a lot of time alone. He enjoyed playing basketball with friends when he got the chance, but when he wasn't playing or working, he was depressed and nothing could cure his heart or his mind. He had friends on the basketball team and a job he adored, but somehow he wasn't fulfilled. It wasn't the future he'd thought he'd have.

Troy was deep in thought when a sports reporter accosted him. She was a brunette, who reminded Troy of Gabriella; the reporter even had pretty brown eyes to match. Troy was thinking of Gabriella more now, he felt deep down he had never really let her go. At the moment, Troy used his boyish good looks and charming smile to market to the audience. Troy talked a little about the game and made references to how he thought they were doing as far as their record.

The sportscaster had a great smile and Troy carefully answered all her question so he wouldn't embarrass himself. The talk of the game was boring to Troy but he didn't show it. As interesting as basketball was to him, it felt like an act for the audience. Troy wished he were a professional player himself. His career had ended in the middle of his sophomore year of college. A bad ankle injury left him unable to jump and ultimately led to him becoming a benched player. His father had been at a loss for how to help Troy through it, and his relationship had become tenuous.

After the interviewer left, Troy got up from his seats and moved toward the press box. One of his good friends from high school and later college wrote for an ESPN version website and got Troy access to the box. The two met for drinks a few times a month. Troy left his seat and made his way towards the box. The fans were filing out and the arena was loud and excited. Troy smiled and pretended to be happy, and kept a wary eye out for more reporters. Troy finally reached the press box after shoving his way through tons of very loud fans. The court was still busy as Troy climbed the stairs that overlooked it. When he reached the top he turned and looked down the hall. The door was closed but that didn't stop Troy from walking up anyways.

Troy knocked on the door and looked up as the door was opened. His friend Chad stood beaming on the other side of the door. Troy smiled. The pressroom was mostly empty, except for a few reporters typing away quietly in the corner. Chad ushered him in. Chad exchanged glances with troy for a moment as if trying to read his face. After his nodded approval the two guys shook hands and sat down on a nearby sofa. Troy tried to smile, but he couldn't think about anything but Gabriella. Chad tossed a thick folder on the table and opened it up. Troy peered over it as well. The first couple pages were statistics, the last pages were game shots and of course a printed version of Chad's article. Troy picked up the article, and read it over carefully for mistakes.

The two men chatted over beers and the night wore on. Troy liked Chad's company more then he could possibly say. Even with Chad, Troy just didn't know where to start the conversation.