Title: Such Sweet Sorrow
Author: EllaKnight22
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Rating: T
Pairing: Troyella!!!
Summary: Gabriella breaks down crying on an abandoned rooftop and is joined by a young man. They reminisce together as they try to make sense of the cruel hand fate has dealt them. What's their story? What is going on in the building below? Who is the young man? Story told through flashbacks. Mix of Angst/Tragedy/Romance/Fluff.

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews so far! Nope, nobody got it right! Read on to find out who Gabi is talking to...and don't worry if you're confused!! Just go with the flow, you'll probably be confused for a while, if you read between the lines you should be able to guess what's happening but all will be revealed...eventually...!

----------

After a while Gabi's tears eventually subsided. She felt guilty when she let other people see her true emotions. It was getting colder on the rooftop but it didn't bother Gabriella. The feeling of being cold was distracting her as she desperately tried to block out the thought of her current situation.

The teenage boy beside her breathed a sigh of relief as Gabriella appeared calmer. He desperately tried to change the subject, not wanting to upset her again.

"So tell me more, what happened when you graduated. Was that when dad signed for the Lakers?" he queried.

Gabi looked at her son and a small smile played on her lips. "Yeah, just after college graduation. Although, he almost turned them down" she confessed.

Zac's eyes went wide. "He almost turned down…the Lakers???" he exclaimed.

Gabi laughed quietly. "Yeah…for me" …

-

--

---

July, 2012

…A basketball glided swiftly through the air and fell, perfectly positioned through the old ragged net in Troy's backyard. It bounced a few times before being retrieved by its owner. Troy's head was in a spin. He had to make one of the biggest decisions of his life within 48 hours and he was driving himself crazy about it. Any other time he had a problem he would go straight to Gabriella, she always had an answer and an overwhelming ability to calm him down no matter what was bothering him. She was his rock. But on this occasion he couldn't go to her. She was part of the problem. And so instead he did the only other thing he could do at a time like this - he played basketball.

It was summertime and Troy and Gabi had just graduated from UCLA and Harvard respectively. Shortly after being reunited they had taken a long vacation to Hawaii. It had been bliss. After spending so long apart and finally knowing they wouldn't be separated again the couple felt like they didn't have a care in the world. Troy proposed to Gabi one night on the beach in Hawaii and she had instantly said yes. Now that they were engaged they were busy planning their wedding.

Gabi had been lucky enough to be accepted to medical school in New York. They planned to move out to NY together and live with Gabi's mom until Troy found a job and they could afford an apartment of their own. They were both full of excitement and looking forward to their wedding and their new life together.

Although Gabi had been spending her summer in Albuquerque with Troy, she had flown out to visit her mom for a week and to start making arrangements for when they moved in. It was the day he drove her to the airport that he received the call. It should have been the most exciting phone call of his life, it was his boyhood fantasy, but instead it presented him with a problem…should he follow his heart? Or his dreams?

The Lakers wanted Troy. He had been invited to LA for a meeting with the coach and the board and to have a medical. The meeting was tomorrow. Troy's dad was ecstatic, he had never been so proud in his entire life but Troy was depressed. He desperately wanted to be happy and celebrate but he couldn't, because he knew that he would ultimately have to pick between The Lakers and Gabi.

He longed to tell her about it, about how he felt. He knew that part of the reason he was feeling bad was because he was keeping something so huge from her and Troy and Gabi told each other everything. But he knew that if he did tell her then she would be placed in the same situation as him and he couldn't do that to her.

Footsteps behind him brought him out of the argument he was having with himself in his head. Troy's dad joined him on the court, smiling widely.

"Lookin' good" he praised his son. "Shoot like that tomorrow and that contract will be yours!" he exclaimed excitedly. Troy couldn't make eye contact with his dad. Instead he just grabbed the ball and continued shooting into the net.

Seeing the look of anguish on Troy's face, the expression on the father's face fell. "Don't tell me you're still worrying about what Gabriella will say. I know you guys had plans but technicalities don't matter right now. You need to get your head in the game, Troy!" his father sternly advised.

Troy spun around in annoyance. "Gabriella is not a technicality, dad" he replied.

"I didn't mean it like that son, I just meant that this is your dream! This is a golden opportunity. Things like this don't come along twice and I'm sure you and Gabi will find a way to work around it. I mean look at the last four years, you guys managed to stay together all this time, I'm sure you'll survive the distance a while longer. Med school won't last forever, Gabriella can move out to LA when she's done." the older man said nonchalantly.

Troy forcefully threw the ball into the net and faced his father. "It's another four years! The last four was hard enough, I don't think I can do that again…I don't think Gabriella can do that again. We're supposed to be getting married next year!" Troy said looking at the ground.

"She loves you Troy. She'll find a way to make it work. Talk to her" the older man urged.

Troy shook his head sternly. "No. No I won't do that to her. Going to med school is her dream. She's so excited. I just can't do that to her. I can't screw everything up for her like that. She'd either give it up or leave me…and I can't ask her to put our relationship on hold again just so I can play basketball." Troy sadly admitted.

Troy's dad was beginning to get frustrated and he desperately tried to remain calm around his love struck son. "Troy, listen to me. This is the Lakers ok? The NBA. You can't say no to them. If you do you're gonna spend your whole life regretting it and thinking 'what if?' Just go to LA, go meet the coach and go for the medical. In the end they may not even want you. So please, just go and see what happens. If it's a yes then you can think about it then, OK?" he advised.

Troy stared intently at his dad, thinking it over. "Ok, I'll go…but no promises" he reluctantly agreed. A wide smile appeared on Jack Bolton's face.

-----

Troy exhaustedly flopped down on the hotel room bed and sighed heavily, staring at the ceiling. It had been a long day of tryouts, meetings and medicals that had finally come to an end. Tomorrow he was meeting the board and his lawyer to discuss and sign a contract, or so they thought. Now that everything had gone so well it seemed even harder for Troy to turn his back on the Lakers but deep down, no matter how much he wanted this, Gabriella was more important to him. He dreaded explaining this to his father.

Suddenly his phone began ringing and Troy reached for it. Gabriella's smiling face greeted him on the screen as he answered the call.

"Gabriella" he said as he stood up from the bed and walked over to the window.

"Hey you" she said smiling down the phone. The sound of her voice momentarily cheered him up. "How are you?" she asked.

"Great, you?" Troy responded lying.

"I'm OK...I miss you" she replied honestly.

Troy sat down on the bed again and sighed. "I miss you more" he tiredly replied.

"Are you sure you're OK? You don't sound it" she queried.

Damn it he thought. Why did she know him so well? Troy took a deep breath and tried to sound more chirpy "Yeah, I'm fine, I'm just tired" he replied hoping she would believe him.

"OK, well I just wanted to call and say hi before I went to sleep. I'll be back in two days, I can't wait to see you again" she said softly.

"I know, I can't wait either" Troy told her.

"Love you" Gabi breathed.

Troy longed to tell her everything but he couldn't do that to her. "Love you too" he replied before hanging up the phone.

Troy dropped his phone on the bed beside him before burying his face in his hands. Talking to Gabriella reminded him why he was doing this. Resolutely he picked up his phone and called his dad.

-----

Troy's dad had lay awake all night tossing and turning. He couldn't stop thinking about his conversation with Troy. The thought of his only son turning down The Lakers killed him. It had been his dream for himself and one he had instilled in Troy from a young age. How could he be handed such a great opportunity and then turn it down so quickly? It wasn't something he could easily understand. Angrily, he sat up in bed and looked to the night stand. It was 6:00AM. He knew there was only one thing he could do and although he knew Troy would be mad he had to at least try it. Sighing loudly he got out of bed, careful not to disturb his sleeping wife, and made his way downstairs. He grabbed the kitchen phone and phone book and sat down at the table. Scanning the pages he quickly found Gabriella's cell phone number and slowly and carefully entered it into the keypad. As the ringing began in his ear he silently prayed that the young girl would understand and make Troy change his mind.

"Hello?" was Gabi's sleepy reply as she was awoken by the call.

"Gabriella, it's Troy's father, Jack" he said seriously.

Gabriella was instantly awake, thinking something had happened to Troy.

"Mr. Bolton, what's happened, is Troy ok?" she worriedly asked.

"Yeah he's fine...but there's something you should know...Troy is in LA" Jack began.

Gabriella was confused, she had just spoken to him the night before, had he lied to her? "He's where?" she questioned worriedly.

"In LA...and I think he's about to make one of the biggest mistakes of his life" Jack told her.

Gabi shook her head, desperately trying to make sense of it all. "I'm sorry, I don't understand." she replied.

Jack took a deep breath. "He had a tryout with the Lakers yesterday and they want him. He's supposed to sign the contract today but he's going in there to turn them down...because of you." Jack explained, hoping his son would forgive him.

Gabriella was silent for a moment as she processed all the information. "I don't get it, this is huge, why wouldn't he tell me?" she asked as she furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Because he wants to be with you. Because he loves you. Now that you've been accepted to med school in New York he feels that it wouldn't be fair on you to know about the Lakers. So he was just going to turn them down. He's scared that if he goes off to live in LA and you're in New York then he'll lose you. And I'm telling you this because I know that you love my son and I know that you want what's best for him." Jack finished. He was met with silence on the other end of the line as Gabi bit her lip. After a moment she gulped hard. "Thank you" she responded before hanging up the phone.

She sat on her bed for a moment staring at the phone in her hands, her mind frantically replaying the phone call. After a minute of gathering her thoughts she jumped out of bed and began to dress as quickly as she could. It was a lot to take in but Gabi knew how much this would mean to Troy and she loved him even more for being so selfless and putting her first.

A few hours later a panicked Gabi ran through the airport as fast as her legs would carry her. The only luggage she brought was her handbag. She barely made it to the gate in time. As she boarded the plane and took her seat she prayed that she wouldn't be too late.

-----

Cold, running water flowed steadily down the drain as Troy watched it pass by, mesmerized. He cupped his hands into the flow of the water and splashed it onto his face as he stood up and faced himself, eye to eye in the bathroom mirror. The face staring back at him was full of sadness. He had bags under his eyes from lack of sleep and his stomach was churning. Second thoughts tempted and teased his mind as he struggled to cope with his final decision. He was due to meet the board in 10 minutes and right now he couldn't face them.

The nagging thought of regret that would surely follow plagued his mind as his fathers' words to him the night before replayed over and over in his head. Could he really turn down this opportunity? He was desperate to accept but anytime he allowed himself to think about it he remembered Gabriella. He had to be strong and do this for her, for the both of them.

Resolutely he stood up straight and grabbed a towel to dry his face. Troy took a deep breath and nervously straightened his tie before turning around and heading out the bathroom door.

As Troy entered the bright and busy hallway he was greeted by his lawyer who was carrying a heavy briefcase. The two shook hands and exchanged pleasantries as Troy reluctantly looked at the open door of the board room in front of him.

"Shall we?" Troy's lawyer asked, motioning towards the door.

Troy sighed. "Um, listen, I didn't mean to waste your time but this is going to be quick. I'm not going to accept their offer" Troy managed to blurt out.

The well dressed man furrowed his brow in confusion. "You've not even heard their offer yet, Troy" he reminded him.

"I know, but it's not about that, you see no matter how great that contract is my fiancé is more important to me and I can't have both so I'm just gonna go in there, thank everyone and turn them down." Troy explained sincerely.

There was silence as Troy's lawyer gave him a quizzical look. "You do realise what you're turning down here?" Troy simply nodded as he gulped to clear the lump that was forming in his throat.

"And you've thought long and hard about this? You're sure this is what you want?" he enquired further, needing confirmation.

"Yes" Troy replied.

Troy's lawyer nodded and followed him into the board room. They greeted the officials and sat down at the long table.

The balding man at the top of the table cleared his throat and addressed Troy. "Well Mr. Bolton, on behalf of everyone here we'd like to thank you for coming all the way here to LA to meet with us yesterday. I think you'll find it's been worth your while" he said smiling as another man passed a thick stack of paper to Troy's lawyer. He briefly glanced at the front cover of the contract before looking towards Troy.

Troy swallowed hard and sighed. "Thank you sir, umm first of all I'd like to thank everyone here for giving me a chance, it means a lot to me. But the truth is-"

Troy was cut off suddenly by the door opening loudly. Everyone in the room turned to stare at the petite dark haired girl who was catching her breath hanging onto the doorknob. A smartly dressed woman was hot on her heels behind her. "Miss, I'm sorry but you can't go in there!" she shouted angrily.

"Gabriella??" Troy exclaimed.

Gabi took a deep breath before entering the room and grabbing Troy's arm. "We need to talk" she said.

Troy stared at her in disbelief before turning to the inquisitive faces around him and smiling apologetically. "Will you excuse me please?" he queried before leaving the room with Gabriella.

They walked a little down the hall before she turned to him and touched his arm gently. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

"I couldn't. How did you find out?" Troy asked.

"Your father. Why couldn't you tell me?" she replied.

"I'll kill him. There was no point, we're going to New York. I'm not signing the contract." He quickly explained.

"Oh yes you are!" Gabriella corrected him.

Troy couldn't comprehend her response. "No, no I can't. I can't not be with you for another four years" he stated miserably.

"I will be with you, here, in LA" she told him smiling.

"But what about med school?" Troy asked in confusion.

Gabriella took a step closer and found his hand, entwining her fingers around his. "There's med schools here in LA too, Troy. It wasn't easy but I phoned the admissions office this morning and faxed in my transcripts. There's a couple of places left and I have an interview tomorrow morning. They pretty much told me I'm guaranteed a place after being accepted in New York." She explained as her smile widened.

Troy was in shock. He stared at her open mouthed as he took it all in. So you're coming here?? To LA? And I can play for the Lakers?!" he excitedly exclaimed.

Gabriella beamed up at him, giggling at his excitement. Troy picked Gabi up and spun her around quickly. She let out a yelp and he set her down, leaning in so their heads touched. Troy smiled widely. "You're amazing, do you know that?" he told her softly.

Gabi leaned in and gently brushed her lips against his. She pulled back and gazed into his eyes before once again finding his hand and entwining her fingers. "Come on, let's go back inside and sign that contract" she eagerly suggested as the pair walked hand in hand back into the board room…

---

--

-

… "So was dad mad at grandpa?" Zac enquired as his mother finished the story.

Gabriella laughed weakly. "No, he thanked him" she said looking towards her son.

Zac smiled, he loved hearing stories about the past, especially happy ones and especially at a time like this…

----------

Still confused? You should be! I promise it will make sense...maybe after chapter 6...lol. The first few flashbacks are basically just telling you their life story. Please continue to guess what's going on, I like to know whether I'm being too obvious or too subtle! Much more will be revealed in the next chapter. PLEASE review!!!! Contructive crit welcomed!!! xoxo