A/N: Okay, so this chapter is going to pick right up where the first one left off. I don't know if this chapter is going to be quite as long, but trust me, it will be just as fulfilling. There are some really important things in this chapter, so enjoy!

Warning: Contains harsh language and sexual implications.

Disclaimer: I don't own Troy, Gabriella, or anything related to High School Musical.

Love Is

Ch. 2- Love Is True

"Mmm…" Gabriella grinned as Troy pulled out a kitchen chair and accidentally knocked the cushion off of it. Shrugging, he left it there and watched as Gabriella poured him a small glass of wine from a bottle of Zinfandel that someone had left the night before.

"I know you don't much favor wine, but it's all we have left." Gabriella shrugged as she held the half full glass in front of Troy, pulling it away as he reached out for it. Troy retracted his hands and glanced up at Gabriella, clearly not finding the Latina's antics amusing.

Gabriella grinned and placed both glasses on the table, pulling out a chair of her own and sitting as Troy instructed her to do so. "So," Troy began as Gabriella picked up her glass and slowly raised it to her lips, smiling seductively as Troy watched her.

"When are you going to admit it?" he questioned, taking a sip of his wine and crinkling his nose slightly at the tangy taste. Gabriella glanced up from her cup, gently swirling the pinkish colored liquid as she cocked her head curiously.

"Admit what?" she question honestly, having no idea what the boy was talking about. Troy sighed and placed his glass on the table and folded his arms as he leaned in towards her. Gabriella placed her own glass down as well, mimicking Troy's actions and leaned in towards him.

"How in love with me you are." He grinned, and by the look on his face, Gabriella knew he was only half joking. Rolling her eyes, Gabriella picked up her wine glass and slowly took a sip as she contemplated her response.

"I'm not." Was the simple answer, one that sparked interest from the tanned athlete. Studying her, Troy shook his head and grabbed his glass, taking another sip and once more crinkling his nose at the taste.

"It's okay," he told her with a shrug, "Just admit it. You love me, and you've been in love with me!" he grinned as Gabriella laughed, but somewhere deep inside his heart, it hurt. "I'm serious." He added as Gabriella continued to laugh.

Not finding what was so funny; Troy folded his arms and leaned back in his chair, studying the beautiful Latina. Even after rough sex he'd observed, she still looked gorgeous. "Gabriella," he spoke up once her fit of laughter had died down. "I'm serious. You should just admit that you 

have feelings for me that go deeper than just being friends." He shrugged and held his hands up in mock surrender.

Gabriella frowned and propped her elbows up on the table, laying her head in her hands as she studied him. "Where is this coming from Troy?" she questioned as Troy looked up at her. "Why are you suddenly so obsessed with thinking I'm in love with you?" she questioned, folding her arms across her chest.

Troy shook his head and remained silent, his ocean blue eyes clouding slightly. "I just thought…" he trailed off and lowered his head, swishing the liquid around in his glass as Gabriella laughed out loud once more.

"Are you kidding Troy?" she admonished, shaking her head at his train of thought. "Troy, were friends, and that's it." She shrugged, looking down at her glass of wine, the sweet yet sour taste now turning her off. "We're friends who fuck. That's all we'll ever be." She looked up at him, noticing he'd become completely silent. "And we'd never work Troy, you know it." She started again, this time more to convince herself.

"You're too fast paced for me, and you tend to get distracted easily, and I'm too high maintenance for you." She knew she was right, and he knew it too. "It's never work. Besides… we've tried it already." She reminded him, bringing up memories of a somewhat painful past.

"We're best friends…and I like it that way." She grabbed her glass and downed the rest of the alcohol, setting the glass down with a clink before reaching across the table and grabbing Troy's. "Don't you?" she questioned as Troy sighed dramatically, an unreadable expression covering his handsome features.

"Besides," she pushed back her chair and stood, waiting for him to stand as well before moving away from the table. "We already live with each other, and we already have the benefits…it's basically like dating." She smiled as Troy came up behind her and pushed her towards the bathroom.

"Yeah," he chuckled as Gabriella pushed him onto the bed playfully. "You couldn't handle me anyway." He grinned as Gabriella gasped. Jumping onto the bed, Gabriella pulled the sheets away from Troy, but stayed facing him.

"I couldn't handle you?" she gasped, sliding the ponytail off from around her wrist and messily wrestled her hair into a messy bun. "I believe I just handled you three times!" She exclaimed, playfully hitting his shoulder as he shrugged.

"Whatever," Troy sighed as Gabriella sat cross legged in front of him. "You still love me." He shrugged and leaned back against the headboard as Gabriella rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"What? Troy," she yelled, pulling the bright red covers over her own body as Troy pulled on the white blanket. "You know what?" she questioned suddenly and Troy could see the excited glint in her eye as she leaned in towards him predatorily.

"What?" he questioned, his face falling as she seemed to have think she just figured out how to perform brain surgery. "I know why you've been so obsessed with thinking I love you all of a sudden!" she exclaimed as Troy cocked an eyebrow in curiosity.

"You're the one that really loves me!" she yelled, pointing her finger in his face as he rolled his eyes and began his mutters of protest. "You love me, and you have deep feelings for me, but you're just too much of a woos to say anything," she began rambling, sitting up on her knees as Troy held himself up by his elbows.

"So, you thought that if you could get me to admit these "undying feelings" to you, you'd be able to finally admit that you love me! That you have feelings for me!" she pumped her arms excitedly as she pinpointed exactly why Troy had been riding her so much about loving him.

"That's exactly it." Troy rolled his eyes, and Gabriella could hear the sarcasm in his voice. Shaking her head, she pointed at him once more with a wide smile on her face.

"I know it is." She smiled as Troy sat up and faced her directly. Both became silent for a few minutes until Troy spoke up.

"How do you if you love someone. You said yourself that you get all the same benefits from having a friend with benefits." He questioned, evoking Gabriella into deep thought.

Sighing, Gabriella folded her arms and thought of exactly how she would describe love. "Troy, love isn't a game. It isn't negotiable." She told him softly; glad that for once he was taking her seriously. "Love is real Troy, and not everybody gets it." Troy looked down at the ripple in the blankets, sighing wholeheartedly.

"Then why bother going for it at all?" he questioned, his voice quiet as Gabriella took in his words. Watching him, Gabriella wasn't exactly sure what she could say to convince him of what love was.

"Because, for those people who find love, it's amazing. It's like, winning the talent show, and being able to take home an amazing prize and a huge trophy," she paused, her breath hitching in her throat.

"And sex is like working the musical. Everybody wins, and the prize is nothing compared to winning that huge trophy that you get when you win the talent show, and none of the other people matter if they weren't involved." She smiled softly, and felt her lips trembling as Troy studied her, his intense gaze startling her a little.

"It's like soul mates." She continued, blinking back tears as Troy lowered his head once more. "Everybody was put on this earth with another person, but they may not have been put near each other." Troy looked up, flicking his hair out of his eyes as the brunette continued. "It's up to us to search for them, and the lucky ones find each other." She sighed, quickly brushing a tear away as it fell unceremoniously down her cheek.

"And that's what love is. A game where only the true people win." She finished, wrapping her arms around her chest as Troy looked up and opened his mouth, looking as if he was about to speak. His tongue darted around in his mouth, but he suddenly closed it just as Gabriella was sure he was about to speak.

"You know," he began as Gabriella looked at him expectantly. "You've got a really fucked up way of explaining things, Gabriella." He laughed and lay down on his side of the bed, cuddling underneath the covers.

Gabriella sighed and placed her head in her hands, having just spilled her heart to a guy who was obviously just a little too dense to understand what she was saying. Grabbing the blanket, Gabriella lay down on the other side of the bed, but didn't turn off the light as she rested her head against the pillow.

After thinking about the conversation they'd just had, Gabriella turned slightly to see if Troy was still awake, but his back was to her. As she rolled back to her own side, she could feel the middle of the bed dip slightly as Troy rolled as well, probably checking for the same thing she had just checked for.

Neither made another movement for few minutes as they contemplated the conversation that had just taken place, and Troy felt bad. He did love her, but quite frankly, Gabriella scared him. She had such high standards about love, and he wasn't sure he could reach them. Heck, he wasn't even really sure he understood them.

Reaching over his hip, he gently grasped the blankets that covered Gabriella's hip, trying to let her know that he understood her the best he could. Sighing, he removed his hand and instead rolled over and pressed his nose against her neck, burying his face in her hair.

When she didn't react to him, Troy sighed and reached over her, turning off the light and cuddling back up against Gabriella's body, gently slipping his arm under hers and held it tightly against her chest.

They laid in silence for a few more minutes until Troy had plucked up the courage to tell Gabriella what he'd been feeling all along. "I love you." He admitted to her, his heart pounding as he waited for her response.

A few seconds later came her response, and Troy suddenly felt as if he'd been freed, his worries no longer important.

"I love you too."

A/N: So? What'd ya'll think? Any good?? I'm going to be posting a new full length story soon, so keep your eye out for that one! Review please!