Disclaimer: I only own two pennies and a piece of string.
I hope everyone likes this. This was originally a two-shot called Happy Mother's Day but no one read it and it sucked, so I pimped it up and I hope people like it now. It's a one-shot. I hope you all like it! Enjoy!
Im here for you
She got out of the car and straightened out her white eyelet dress that went down to her knees. Her hair was flowing in the breeze softly and so was the skirt of her outfit. She approached the front door and knocked three times before stepping back to wait. After a few seconds, the door was opened by his mother. She was a beautiful woman with red hair and blue eyes; his blue eyes. Both women smiled at each other as the younger one stepped inside the house.
"Happy Mother's day Mrs. Bolton" Gabriella said, as she handed her a brown gift bag with pink tissue paper peeking on the top. Mrs. Bolton smiled at her as she gratefully accepted the gift.
"Oh Gabriella, you are such a sweet girl, you didn't need to bring me a gift." Mrs. Bolton answered with a sweet smile.
"It's nothing Mrs. Bolton. I was happy to do it." Gabriella said. Deep down, she really was happy to buy a mother's day gift. It had been so long since she had been able to give someone a gift on that day, and now that she was able to do it, she no longer felt as left out as she has for the past years of her life.
"Troy is upstairs getting dressed; do you want me to go get him?" Mrs. Bolton said to the young girl.
"Its fine, don't worry, Ill get him. It is after all your day." Gabriella said politely.
"Alright, Jack is preparing the food in the kitchen so I'll go and accompany him. Troy's room is the first door to the left when you go up the stairs. Let me know if you need anything dear."
"Thanks Mrs. Bolton." Gabriella said, as she headed toward the stairs that were on her left. She slowly ascended the cherry wood staircase while holding on to the railing. Her gold slippers were padding softly against the crimson carpet that lined the floor of the house. Crimson. A color similar to the one of her blood. The blood that at this moment was flowing freely in her veins and through her heart, which at the moment was beating fast with excitement. She approached Troy's door and knocked twice to let him know she was there.
"Troy, its Gabriella, can I come in?" She said, raising her voice so he would hear her through the wooden door.
"Come in!" She faintly heard Troy say. She opened the door and entered the red and white room. If there was one thing that Troy had, it was Wildcat Spirit. His room was a shrine to the school and its colors. Gabriella smiled at the sight and started searching the room for her handsome friend. She spotted a closed door in the corner of the room, and she assumed it was the bathroom, and that Troy was inside it. She proceeded to sit on the bed while she waited for him. Not too soon after, the door opened and Troy emerged from what was in fact, a walk-in closet big enough to fit a group of twenty.
"Hey Gabriella! I'm glad you came." He said, as he approached the girl sitting on his bed.
"Of course Troy! How could I not? Thanks for inviting me." She said as she stood up and approached him.
Flashback
It was the Friday before Mother's Day and Gabriella was putting her things in her locker after a tiring day of school. She set her pink notebooks on the top shelf of her locker and took out her Advanced Calculus book and put it in her bag. Although she had no Calculus homework for the weekend, she knew that doing math problems was just the thing she needed as entertainment for the weekend. It was mother's day on Sunday and she wouldn't be able to see her friends because they would be spending the day with their families.
Gabriella frowned as she thought of the boring weekend that awaited her. Ever since her mom had passed away, Mother's day had been a lonely, sad and boring day for her. Julia Montez, Gabriella's mother had passed away three years ago because of an unexpected heart attack, leaving Gabriella devastated, and living with her father, who had moved to Albuquerque to be with his daughter.
Gabriella's frown soon went away when she felt a pair of strong arms encircle her waist from behind. She leaned back into his chest as she felt Troy give her a sweet and soft kiss on the cheek, lingering longer than he should, as always. She turned in his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a similar kiss to the one he had previously given her.
"Hey" Troy said, as he smiled down at the petit girl.
"Hey" Gabriella answered, looking into his sapphire eyes.
"So what are you going to do this weekend?" Troy asked, knowing well that she wouldn't be doing anything. Family holidays, especially mother's day, were always lonesome for Gabriella, and Troy felt that he needed to change that in some way.
"Nothing, I guess." She said. "Dad's going away on a business trip so I'll be home alone. I think I might catch up on my reading, the past weekends have been eventful with all o Chad's parties, and I haven't picked up a book in a while." She answered. Although she was a tremendous actress, and was acting as though she didn't care that the weekend would be horrible, Troy saw right past her façade and was determined to make her enjoy her weekend.
"Well, my dad is making Sunday brunch for my mom, would you like to come over?" Troy said, hopefully waiting for her to say yes.
"That's sweet of you Troy, but really, I will be fine at home, and I would hate to impose on you and your parents."
"Come on Gabriella, you know you wont be imposing, my parents love it when you come over, and so do I, so please, say yes? I'll even let you watch some movies from my Ben Stiller collection!" He said, and he gave her his best puppy dog pout.
"Fine…" Gabriella said. She would always give in to Troy, no matter how absurd some of his requests were at times.
"Good!" Troy's said, as he hugged her again. "Now come on, I'll take you home." He said, as he grabbed her book bag from her hands and hung it over his left shoulder. She closed her locker and they headed off to the parking lot, intertwining their fingers as they walked side by side.
End of flashback
The two teens were face to face, and soon embraced each other in a warm hug, their arm wrapped around each other's waists.
It seemed as if the world stopped every time they touched. Gabriella's heart went a million times faster than before, and Troy's was matching her pace. They both breathed in each other's scents and smiled contently. To Gabriella, there was no better smell than Troy's; a mixture of Axe body deodorant and peppermint. Troy couldn't get enough of Gabriella's baby cologne, which she refused to give up even though she was no longer a baby, or anything near it. They separated from their hug and looked into each others eyes. Brown and Blue. Chocolate and the sea. They felt drawn to each other, like every time they looked into each others eyes. Troy leaned in and Gabriella mirrored his actions. Their noses grazed, and they both inhaled each others breaths and stayed glued in the position. Neither of them made a move to pull away or get closer.
This is how the relationship with them was. They weren't close enough to be something more than friends, but they weren't friends either. They were in a strange, in-between circumstance, and though neither admitted it, they loved the way they were with one another. The fear of being closer was riveting, and that caused them to be happy with being as close as they could without risking anything.
Gabriella was the first to pull away as she heard Jack Bolton calling their names from downstairs. She gave Troy a half smile, the smile that was his, and no one else's, and she turned and headed out of the door to his room leaving him standing there in a daze.
Snapping out of his daze, Troy followed the brunette down the stairs. There, he was pleasantly greeted with the smell of pancakes and scrambled eggs, his mother's favorite breakfast.
"Wow Dad! Who knew you could cook without burning the food?" Troy asked his dad mockingly.
"Well son, back in college, before I landed your mom, I was quite the cook! I even made crème brûlé!" his father answered.
"Who knew?" Troy asked, while grinning. "I think you and Zeke need to hang."
Laughter filled the air at that precise moment from the four, but one of them could be heard among all the others, and not because of its loudness.. Gabriella's sweet and melodic laugh was very distinct, which made it stand out and bring a smile to everyone who would hear it. It was because of that that Troy stopped laughing and just smiled, while watching the girl compose herself after a moment of joy. She noticed him looking at her, and she blushed deeply, but soon smiled at him, connecting her gaze with his.
"Well how about we go test out Jack's cooking skills? I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving!" Mrs. Bolton said.
The four of them headed out to the dining room which was decorated with many vases of yellow and pink roses, a gift from Troy to his mother. They settled down into the four person table and started filling their plates up with food. During brunch, all of them shared stories, laughed, and simply made the day for Mrs. Bolton a very happy one.
Gabriella watched as Troy interacted with his mother. The way she looked at him was impressive. She was obviously very proud of her son and acknowledged him for the young man he had become. Troy smiled at his mother and looked at her admiringly. She had given him life. She was the one who had made him who he was today, and he was completely grateful to her for it.
Gabriella had to admit she felt slightly jealous, but most of all, she felt sad and alone. She wished she had someone look at her the way a mother looks at her children. She desired to be nurtured and cared for like only a mother could. Troy had that, heck, most of her friends did, but she didn't. She barely ever felt jealousy toward others, because she knew everyone was different and fortunate in different ways, but when it came to having a mother, envy invaded her being and turned her into a green monster.
As soon as the group finished the meal, they all headed to the family room to watch family movies, remembering all the hard work Mrs. Bolton had done over the years. This was a Bolton family tradition and like every year, they ate their strawberry ice cream while enjoying the home-made films. Gabriella felt fortunate to be included in the activities, but soon her happiness turned into sorrow. She watched as a five year old Troy hugged his mother and she kissed his forehead while combing his hair with her fingers, because his hair was all over the place. She watched as a ten year old Troy blew out his candles, and then ran to hug his mother, who had tears in her eyes; her baby was grown up.
Troy's arm was around Gabriella's shoulder. He was laughing at the memories, not noticing the tears that were falling from his beautiful friend's eyes. Suddenly, Gabriella chocked back a sob, making Troy turn to her. As soon as he noticed the tears, his smile turned into a concerned look.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Troy asked in a nurturing voice. Gabriella looked into his eyes so filled with concern and soon broke down crying. The whole Bolton family turned to her, confused as to what was happening, but Gabriella just sat there looking at her lap and sobbing. She couldn't handle the three pairs of eyes on her, so she removed Troy's arm from her shoulders and ran out of the house.
The three Bolton's stayed put in their respective seats while looking blankly at the door. They had no idea what had just happened to the cheery and lovely girl that they all loved as if she was part of the family. Finally it dawned on Troy. He knew why his friend was crying, and as soon as he realized it, he couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it before.
"I know what's wrong. It's her mother. I think our memories brought back some of her own." Troy said, while looking down.
"Oh dear, that poor girl. I can't believe we put her through this. Troy, dear, would you mind going there and consoling her? She must feel so sad." Mrs. Bolton said caringly.
"No need to ask me mom, I was just going to ask you if I could go." Troy said, as he stood up from his chair. He went over to his mother and hugged her.
"Bye mom, happy mother's day. Bye dad." Troy said, and with that, he left the house.
Troy ran all the way to Gabriella's house, which was about eight blocks away. As soon as he arrived in fron of her house, he rang the doorbell although he knew there would be no answer. After two minutes of waiting at the front door, he opted for his alternate entrance, and so, he went around the back of the house and into the back yard. The large tree now had a few wooden steps that Troy and Gabriella had built together, so it would be easier for the boy to climb the tree on his midnight visits. He stepped on the now-mossy steps one by one while holding on to the branches, which were at the moment, filled with leaves. Finally, he reached the balcony. He swung one leg over the railing, and then another and he jumped inside the balcony.
The shades covering Gabriella's windows were closed, so he could not look inside. He slowly reached for the door knob and opened the door, trying to make as little noise as possible. He went inside the room and closed the door behind him. His eyes traveled around the room, but he saw nothing. He moved around the room trying to see any signs that would show she had been there, and alas, there were the shoes and purse she had worn earlier that day. He sighed in relief and went out of her room, hoping to find her soon. Troy moved expertly around the house room by room, but he couldn't find Gabriella. There was only one room left, and now that Troy thought about it, he couldn't believe he hadn't checked there first. He headed to the end of the hallway where the master bedroom of the house was; the room that was no longer inhabited; Mrs. Montez's room. As he approached the room, he heard soft sniffling. He smiled, not because of her sadness, but because he had found her. He opened the door softly, and his eyes caught sight of the devastated girl. There she was, in the bed, curled up facing against the door, holding in her hands her mother's old pillow, and crying.
The room was definitely Mrs. Montez's old room; there was no doubt about that. Everything in the room identified the deceased woman, even the scent. Roses and Lavender mixed just perfectly. The smell Gabriella missed more than anything.
Troy moved close to the bed and climbed on slowly. He saw Gabriella jump, but he knew she was to afraid to turn around. She probably thought it was a burglar. He crawled to the corner of the bed she was in and lay down behind her, his front facing her back. She was barely breathing, obviously startled by whoever was getting into the bed with her. Suddenly, she felt a pair of arms hug her from behind, and she breathed out in relief. She knew those arms anywhere. They were Troy's. She turned around in his arms and hugged him back, bringing her face into his chest. She began to cry once again.
Troy kissed her forehead and then lifted her chin so she would look at him. Her eyes were drenched in tears, which soon fell and wet her cheeks. He kissed each one of the tears away and then kissed her nose, where he lingered. Her breath was ragged, his closeness never affected her this way, but she couldn't hold it in. She felt so fortunate having him there so close to her. She looked into his eyes, and for the first time realized what everyone around them already knew. He was in love with her. She knew he cared about her, and despite her previous sadness, at the moment, she felt ecstatic. She was pulled out of her thoughts by his voice.
"I know you are sad. I know it's hard for you. I may not know what its like, but I know how you feel, because whenever you feel something, I feel the same. If you are sad, so am I, if you are happy, so am I. If you are nervous, so am I. So I may not know what its like to lose a mother, but I do know how you feel." He said, all while looking at her in the eyes with an intense loving look. She hugged him, thanking him for everything through that hug.
"Thanks Troy. I just… I don't know. I know I'm never supposed to get over my mothers death, and I'm doing well about it, but seeing you with your mom made me realize I have no mother anymore, and I miss her. I miss her so much." Gabriella whispered while more tears flowed down her already tear stricken face.
"I don't know if this will be very comforting, but even if you don't have a mother, you have so many people who love you and are there for you. My mom already loves you as her own, and so do Mrs. Mckessie and Mrs. Danforth. And even if this isn't the same as motherly love, all of us, your friends, love you so much. We are all here for you. I'm here for you. So your mom may be gone, but from up there, she's making sure you are cared for." Troy said and smiled at her. She looked lovingly into his eyes while softly smiling. Softly she cupped his face and brought it to hers. She kissed his nose and then both of his cheeks, keeping her face close to his.
"You are so great. I don't know what I would do without you. Thank you so much for being here for me" She smiled gratefully while still looking into his eyes. He smiled and leaned his forward on hers.
"Anytime" he said. Both of their eyes were closed, and they stayed in that position for a while. It was one of those moments that from afar, made them look like a couple in love, but to them, it was just normal. It was how they acted. It was them. They were lying on their sides facing each other .His arms were around her waist and hers were resting on the crook of his neck. Their foreheads were toughing and their eyes were closed, but they were both awake. His hand were drawing small circles on her waist, which gave her goosebumps; the good kind.
"Troy?" She asked, suddenly having a spontaneous urge.
"Yeah?" he mumbled, too tired and comfortable to talk.
"You know how earlier you said you feel everything I feel?" She said. He opened his eyes and looked into hers, noticing the insecurity in them. He nodded, with a questioning look on his face.
"Well, if I were to say I feel in love, what would you say?" she asked, not specifying anything about her question. Troy smiled softly at her, his eyes sparkling, for he had noticed the sparkle in hers.
"Then I'd have to say I love you too" Troy said smiling. Her soft smile turned into a bright grin, her face glowing with happiness. He leaned even closer to her, stopping right when his lips her grazing hers. In a sudden move, he leaned forward and captured her lips with his. He kissed her softly, showing her exactly how much he loved her, and she responded their same way. Their lips together like yin and yang. It was perfect. He deepened the kiss, putting his tongue into her mouth, not in an aggressive way, but in a loving way. He needed to taste her. He needed to be closer to her. She responded by opening her mouth wider and touching his tongue with hers. Her hands went from the crook of his neck to the back of it, and she played with the soft hair that was there. They kissed passionately for a while until breathing became an issue. They pulled away and took deep breaths, as if they had just finished running a marathon. He smiled and she smiled back, love pouring out of their faces and eyes. She started giggling, making him smile.
"What's so funny? He asked, laughing along with her because her giggles were contagious. Once again, he was entranced by her laugh.
"I never said it was you I loved. I just said I felt in love." She said, with a mock serious expression. His face turned from joyful to scared in a matter of seconds. He turned as red as a tomato and winced.
"I… I thought you… I mean… ugh I'm sorry. I guess I took it the wrong way" he said, while sitting up and touching the back of his neck. "I'll just go now, you must feel uncomfortable" he said, and stood up from the bed, heading toward the door. While he was doing, Gabriella was struggling to keep her laughter in, but as soon as she saw his devastated form, she got worried.
"Oh Troy, Im sorry, that was a bad joke" she said, as she got off the bed and walked toward him. He had his back turned to her, breathing deeply. She put her hand on his back and turned him around to look at him. He had a confused face, and if you didn't know him, you'd think he wasn't a smart person who wore that expression all the time. She smiled at him with love and he quickly realized that it really was a joke and smiled back.
"I love you so much." She said, and wrapped her arms around his neck in order to bring him down to her small height. His lips were on hers quickly, and this time, they moved rapidly, almost in a rush. They needed to be close to each other ad that kiss was the perfect way to do so. Finally, after a while they pulled away.
"So, you want to go back to my house?" Troy said, and moved her hair out of her eyes. "I think we might watch some movies soon, and I promise, these will be funny movies. Preferably with Ben Stiller in them." Troy said with a huge hopeful grin.
"Sure! And you really need to lay down on the Ben Stiller obsession. Im gonna start to think you love him more than me!" She said, laughing.
"Nah, he's hot, but you are my one and only" he said, half joking and half serious. She hugged him and pecked his lips a few times before grabbing his hand and pulling him out of the room.
As Gabriella walked hand in hand with Troy to his house, fingers intertwined, she knew what she was leaving behind; sorrow. She knew she no longer had to be sad about her mother being gone, but now she could just have happy memories of the woman she loved so much. She wasn't leaving her mother behind, but she was leaving behind the pain her death had caused her. She wasn't leaving behind the memories; she was leaving behind the loneliness. As she thought about all of this, she looked at Troy and smiled, knowing that he was here for her.
A/N: 16 pages! I hope you all enjoyed that. My first story, Runny Noses aren't always bad, was a big hit, but when I posted half of this one, only two people reviewed. Maybe I'm just a one-hit wonder, which sucks, but I tried my best. It might be all over the place though. Please review if you liked it! It would really make me happy! And as I've said before, my first language isn't English, so if there are some sentences that don't make sense, I'm sorry (
This is dedicated to my best friend, Adriana. She lost her mom about three years ago, but we've let her know we are there for her, which has made her less sad over the years.