"Can't cool off you're on fire, no cold tears gonna put you out."

Taryn's Pov:

I think he was glaring me down on purpose. Actually, I knew it. I could feel his steely grey eyes burning steadily against the side of my face, while I sat there with my legs crossed growing more and more uncomfortable underneath his surveillance. I tugged at the hem of my tank, not totally sure of what he was going to do.

I don't want to call him my ex-boyfriend, but he was. Along with being my twin brother's best friend and trusted confidant, which pretty much explained why he was always over at our house even after the break-up. It didn't help that he lived next door either, and his window was right across from mine. He was Nathaniel Collins, and he was an enormous part of East High's reigning royalty, which I was currently immersed in. I really couldn't explain why since they weren't my kind of people, but here I was, sitting with the social elites while they decided who was going to be their next victim in tomorrow's gossip menu.

"Miss Taryn Montez," Lauren Price's calm voice rang out and brought me back into their conversation, "I didn't realize you had time to tear yourself away from the books to come out and have a little fun." She smirked a little. I really wasn't that much of a book worm, I just didn't go out as much after Nathan and I were officially done.

"That's cause she found out where real learning experiences comes from," Gregory Reynolds ran his hand down his broad chest and sent a wink in my direction.

Oh god. This was not my territory at all.

Greg looked up behind me and his smirk faded, he sat down quickly, "Look man I was just…"

"I don't blame you Reynolds." Nathan jumped over the sofa and sat next to me. "I mean, it's not your fault the girl is clueless to the fact that it's winter and she should put some god damn clothes on."

I was wearing a lot more than that slut that was all over him a few minutes ago; here he was being a jerk again. I tried my best to ignore him; I crossed my arms and looked in the opposite direction.

"Who's the fucking idiot who thought it was a good idea to bring you here?" His low breath against the side of my neck. Nathan was fatally attractive, and I think that in times like these he meant to scare off all the other guys by being dangerously on edge. Reminding everyone that was present that I was still hands off.

I didn't answer him. I grabbed my sweater and LV bag, and left finding my date. I was completely over Nathan, him and his whole East High God image.

"Taryn seriously, what are you doing here," I felt his hand wrap around my arm.

"GET OFF NATE!" I spun around and almost fell into him, "Can you just leave me alone and go back to that blonde you had your hands all over?"

He bit his lip and literally scooped me up by my waist hauling me outside on the porch.

"What do you want?" I pushed off his arms and glared at him, "What's your problem?"

"What's YOUR problem?" He retort back at me, throwing himself in my face, "You were making a fucking scene in there." Nathan flung his arm out, stretching towards the front door, his index finger pointed straight into the living room.

I was the one making a scene? I knew there was a good reason we broke up, "I'm not even going to acknowledge that with a response."

"Then what are you doing here?" I hated it when he acted as if social events were only safe for him and Trey to go.

Crossing my arms, I glared back up at him and answered, "I came with someone."

It didn't seem like he caught what I said. He just stood there, his eyes still looking dangerously pissed, and then he slowly shifted. He leaned back and his glare faded. "You came with someone?"

Yeah, I was a little surprised too, considering I hadn't been out as much as I used to be. "Yes," I could hear my own voice wavering with nervousness, "so back off."

"Who'd you come with?"

"It's none of your business."

"Who?"

"She's with me." David answered calmly as he walked outside, he finished the rest of his drink and licked his lips, looked up and smiled at Nathan.

Nathan's first looked at him, and then his accusing eyes went back to me. "Son of a bitch," he let go of his arm and his fist flew across David's handsome jaw. I cringed.

"I AM NEVER GOING OUT EVER AGAIN," Gabriella's seventeen-year-old daughter announced angrily as soon as she stepped inside; she stormed up the stairs and slammed the door shut.

Her twin brother, Trey, who currently had his mouth stuffed with cold pizza and Rockstar, turned his attention from the TV and then looked up at his mother. "She's going to regret saying that," he swallowed and turned back to the glare of the screen, "She probably ran into Nathan." He propped up his feet on the coffee table and continued in a sing song voice, "You should've let me go…" Gabriella couldn't help but laugh a little at her daughter's unknown frustrations.

"You are fully aware that you are grounded," she smacked his head softly before heading up to Taryn's room, "Feet off the table."

He responded in a grunt and begrudgingly pulled the off and back to the floor.

She shook her head and continued climbing up the stairs. "Babe? You want to talk about it?"

Taryn's door flew open and she started ranting about her night, "I wonder if people understand the term "EX"." Her face was scrunched up and upset, "You know… as it "former"?, "previous"?, "past"?..."

"Nathan?" She guessed, since he was the only boy that she'd ever been in a relationship before.

"YES." Taryn pulled off her sweater and threw it carelessly on the four-poster bed, as her mother entered her room. She turned around and looked at her mother, her piercing blue eyes that she inherited from her absentee father springing back memories that hurt more that they helped. "Want to know what he did?" The teenager peeled off her tank, "He beat up my date."

Gabriella snorted.

"MOM," her face fell in disappointment, "it's not funny!"

She covered her mouthed and contained her laughter. "Why would he do that, babe?"

She shrugged, "Cause he hates me?"

Her mother sat down on the bed, "He doesn't hate you."

She pulled on a fitted tee and collapsed back into her bed. "He hates David Nielson though," she confessed in a quieter voice.

Gabriella's eyes widened, "David Andrew Nielson?" As in Kelsi's nephew.

Her daughter nodded slowly. "You should've seen the look on his face," she pulled a pillow over her head, her voice was muffled, "He really hates me now."

She rubbed the girl's back, much like she used to when Taryn was upset from a bad day of school, or whatever happened. "He doesn't hate you… I'm sure he didn't mean it."

Taryn pushed the pillow off for a moment, and smiled sarcastically "Yeah, and I'm sure he thought how much he didn't mean it when he almost permanently dislocated David's jaw from his face."

"Is he okay?" She was starting to grow a little concerned.

The girl shrugged and pulled the pillow back over her head, "He's fine now, he just texted me a couple of minutes ago."

"Good," she answered with relief, "Maybe you should talk to him."

She sat up in a split second, "Are you kidding me?"

Gabriella shrugged, "Honey, it's not good to carry around uncharted feeli-"

"WHOA," she interrupted her mom, "There are NO feelings anymore."

She rolled her eyes, "Whatever babe, feelings, baggage… whatever. You two just need to break up with each other officially, or stop playing games with one another."

"Yeah!" Sarcastic Taryn was back, "Because everyone knows how the Basketball Captain and the Valedictorian are meant to be together!" She gave her mother a tired glance and retreated back underneath the pillow.

"Wouldn't be the first time it's happened," Gabriella said inwardly to herself.

Junior Year At UA (2011)

"Taylor just told me earlier that you won't talk to anyone," Chad's hand swept over his hair and he glanced at her expectantly, "Start talking."

She even laughed a bit at his assumptions. "I talked to her this morning," and then one of those confused smiles grew on her face, "I don't know what she's talking about."

He sat down, his face gave away his thoughts, knowing that it wouldn't have been that easy for her just start blabbering about her current situation with his best friend.

"I'm a little tired Chad," fishing for excuses to leave, she grabbed the front door's handle and was halfway in when he interrupted her.

"… I saw Troy with Livvy this morning in class… like. 'with' her." He shifted his eyes away and looked at the porch flooring. Sometimes she regretted her decision to go to the same college as the rest of her friends.

God, why did he have to go there. "Yeah… well I did too," the door wouldn't budge. He had his foot in the way. "We're not dating anymore," She confessed, "It was a mistake."

He was appeased with that answer, actually he even more curious as to what had happen. "What… Hap-"

"I don't know," Gabriella cut him off, it was really the truth, she had no idea whatsoever where Troy and her had fallen apart.

"Why'd you guys break up with each-" He moved his foot away.

"Night Chad!" She plastered on a reassuring smile, "See you tomorrow at school!"

He pushed the door open this time and half his body was in, "Wait Gabs."

She bit her lip.

"What's going on?"

It was getting pretty obvious that he was as stubborn as Taylor complained about on the phone during their girl talks, "I didn't break up with Troy, your best friend decided that he was hung up on that bobble head cheerleader which resulted in him letting me go."

His expression didn't change, in fact his grinned a little.

The jerk.

"Come on, seriously… what happened?"

He didn't believe her? Gabriella was starting to grow annoyed, "You're best friend, the East High basketball god, decided that I wasn't enough for him and he broke up with me."

His smile faded as he started to sense that the brunette wasn't kidding.

"Night Cha-"

He grabbed and pulled her into a tight embrace, and it was as if he held some kind of magic over her emotions in that moment, because the girl actually felt like crying. She was so over Troy, She was done with him the moment that he muttered those words that always ended up in a break up, 'We need to talk.' Gabriella was even over his devilish grin that it seemed as though every girl had fought over. She was OVER Troy, but she was crying?

"I'm going to fix this," his arms tightened and he informed her in a steady voice.

She pulled her emotions back and pushed him away, Gabriella was determined not to be that overly emotionally ex-girlfriend that was going to cry over her ex-boyfriend. No matter how charming and sweet he used to be she was over it. "It's okay," the brunette faked a smile, "I don't really care anymore."

Chad stood there and studied her grin. He must've known that she was faking it but what did it matter, the girl was going to get over sooner or later anyway. "You do care," he countered a little nervousness in his voice.

"Good night Chad." Gabriella finally push the front door back open and climbed my way up the stairs.

So, I've been reading a lot of HSM fic, and decided that i wanted to write one TOO! Don't worry this is a total TxG fic... well not TOTALLY because it's going to do with their kids and etc.

Oh, and i can't take credit for that first line in italics... it's from the Midway State "Nobody Understands" hence my title... ?!

Thank's for reading! Review???