In Loving Memory

Hey, guys. I guess it's time for me to get serious now…this story is dedicated to a girl from my church that died in a car accident on Sunday night. Although I didn't know her very well, a church is a family, and I cried when I heard about it. I went to the funeral home tonight to see her, and I got this idea. I hope you like it, although I cried while writing it.

Troy's POV

My name is Troy Bolton, and my girlfriend, the mother of my child, died last night. This morning I went and got a tattoo on my left bicep. It's a cross with roses and a banner that says "In Loving Memory of Gabriella Alessiah Montez: November 3rd, 1989- February 4th, 2007. I Will Love You Forever." As I sit on the couch at the funeral home, I can't help but ask myself why. Why did she have to die?

FLASHBACK:

It all started when we were driving down a street that wasn't normally icy. Last night it just happened to be a bit slippery, and Gabriella was driving. She was being careful, but it was dark. We had left our five month old daughter with my parents for the evening.

As we drove, I looked at Gabriella. She glanced at me for a second and blushed.

"Gabriella, I love you so much. I will love you until the day I die," I said.

"I love you, too, Troy, until the day that I die and forever beyond that," she replied.

I guess she had started crying at that moment, because the next thing I knew, we were sliding across the road. Unable to take control of the vehicle, she reached over and grabbed my hand.

"It's okay, Gabi. We're gonna be okay," I said to her.

At that moment, we slid into the ditch and flipped numerous times. The last thing I remember is hearing Gabi's screams before she crashed through the windshield. I saw her body sprawled across the hood of the car, and my world went dark.

When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed, and there were flowers and cards. "Gabriella?" I asked softly, hoping for a response. Just hearing her sweet voice would calm my fears.

Instead, I heard my father. "Troy, Gabriella…she…" I looked up at him, and tears were streaming down his face.

"She what? Where's my girlfriend?"

"Troy, Gabriella…isn't with us anymore. I'm sorry. She's in Heaven," he finished.

I started to cry. "Dad, can't they do anything?"

"I'm sorry, son. It killed her instantly. There is nothing they can do now. They tried."

I just sat and cried for what seemed like forever. Finally, Gabriella's mom came in with a wheelchair for me to sit in, although I wasn't hurt that badly. She wheeled me down the hallway to a secluded room, where I saw Gabriella's body. She was covered in cuts and bruises and you could barely tell it was her. But underneath, I saw my beautiful Gabriella, the same one who laughed at all of my jokes even if they weren't funny, the same one who told me she would love me until the day she died.

Mrs. Montez left me alone with her body. I rested my weak hand over her heart, and I spoke softly, hoping she could hear me, even all the way up in Heaven. "Gabriella, I love you. Don't you ever forget that, even if you're in Heaven with Jesus. You're my baby, my sweetheart, my Angel. I will always love you, Gabi."

Just then, a strange presence pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked up, and there was a bright light. A figure glowed in its midst. "Troy," a voice said. I looked closer at the figure and saw that it was an angelic version of Gabriella. "Troy, I love you, too, and I'm sorry I had to leave you. It was my time to go, and I promise that I will be waiting for you when you get to Heaven. Don't ever forget me, Troy. Take care of Jasmine for me, okay?" And then she was gone.

"Troy? Troy?" my mother's voice asked. I shook my head, realizing that I had had a vision, a daydream, a mirage, if you will. My mother looked really worried, but she tried to be brave and continued. "Troy, they said you can come home now."

"Mom?" I asked, my voice shaking.

She looked at me.

"Is it okay that I'm sad? Scared? It is alright to cry?" I asked.

"Oh, Honey, yes. It's normal for you to cry. Go ahead, I'm here for you."

And with that, I began to cry.

END FLASHBACK

I sit here now among the flowers, cards, stuffed animals and photo albums. I looked down at one picture in particular, of me and Gabriella with a five minute old Jasmine the day she was born. Tears form in my eyes, but I try to hold them back. I have to be brave. For me, for Gabriella, for Jasmine. I know she wouldn't want me to be sad.

I looked up at Gabriella's casket, and once again, I try to reassure myself everything would be okay. I don't know how, but I know it will.

FIVE YEARS LATER:

I looked down at Gabriella's gravestone. It read, "In Loving Memory of Gabriella Alessiah Montez: November 3rd, 1989- February 4th, 2007. We love and miss you, Gabriella. May God Keep You In His Loving Arms Forever." Underneath, in smaller print, it read, "Gabriella- Precious Daughter, Loving Girlfriend, Caring Mother, Excellent Student, Best Friend- You Will Be Missed Greatly."

"Daddy?" a small voice asked from behind.

I looked down at my daughter. She looked exactly like her mother, brown hair, brown eyes, that same smile. "Yes, Jasmine?"

"Is it okay if I cry?"

I nodded, pulling her in for a hug. I kissed the top of her head. "Yes, Jasmine."

We sat like that for a long time, and finally she looked up at me. "Daddy?"

I looked at her.

"Did Mommy love me?"

"Yes, Jasmine, your mother loves you very much, even if she is in Heaven."

And with that, I picked her up and carried her off into the sunset. Sure, life is tough, but I know that I will see Gabriella again in Heaven one day. And that's all that I need to hang on and be strong.

Thanks for reading! Please review, and while you're at it, tell me if I should do a story from their daughter's point of view about what life is like without her mother- her first time being a woman, her wedding day, the day she gives birth to her first child…

In Loving Memory of Kaitlyn: November 3rd, 1989- February 4th, 2007.

"Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see." – Hebrews 11:1

This is pretty much what happened to Kaitlyn, except that she didn't have a daughter.

Thank you, Sharayah