"Gabi you have to come downstairs now! We are going to be late!" Sharpay yelled up the stairs.
"I can't come down like this!" She yelled back down.
"What are you talking about? You look fine!" She asked back getting frustrated with her friend.
"No I'm too exposed." She told Sharpay.
"It's just a bikini everyone is wearing them. Now get down here or I'm going to go get Troy." She told her friend.
"Fine go get him then. I'm not coming down!" Gabi yelled back down to her.
"Fine. Troy!" Sharpay yelled loudly. Troy came running over to the end of the stairs.
"What now?" Troy asked her.
"I'm not coming down!" Gabi yelled.
"Why not? You're gonna look fine no matter what. And if you don't come down I'm barging in." Troy said to her.

***No response came***

Troy ran up and opened her bedroom door to find her examining her body in her full sized mirror.
"Gabi come on what's wrong now?" Troy asked coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Troy I look weird in this." She said turning around in his arms to look at him in the eyes. "You look fine. Now put a cover up on and let's go." Troy said still holding her. "Can I ride with you instead of crazy lady loud mouth Sharpay down there?" She asked him now free of his grip.
"Sure. Now let's get moving this is the end of the year party and we have to be there." Troy agreed.
"Okay I'm coming." Gabi said putting on her cover up and heading downstairs.
***2 hours later***
Gabriella was sitting at a table watching all of her friends splashing around and playing in the pool that belonged to someone in her class. Alysa Cunnington walked over and took a seat next to Gabi.
"Hey Gabi!" She said casually.
"Hey Alysa!" She responded.
"So I hear that you're dating Troy Bolton." She said.
Gabi laughed. "Yeah like that's actually true. No he's my best friend. I've known him since the day I was born. So actually he's kind of like my brother." Gabi explained to her.
"Oh so you wouldn't mind if I asked him out?" She asked.
" I guess not. I just gotta warn you, he doesn't usually say yes. And if he does then it doesn't usually last long." Gabi warned her.
"Okay thanks for the heads up! I'll be seeing you!" Alysa getting up and then she flipped her red hair and walked towards the pool steps. Gabi herself decided to get up. She walked to where all her friends were in the pool.
"Hey guys I'm gonna head home now." Gabi told them.
"Why?"Sharpay asked.
"I'm just not in the partying mood I guess." She answered.
"Well do you need a ride home? I can take you back." Troy offered.
"Um no I'm okay. I can walk." She turned him down.
"No no no. I'm not gonna let you walk home at this time of night. It's getting dark out. I'm driving you. End of discussion." Troy said getting out of the pool and grabbing his things. They walked to Troy's car and got in. Troy put the key in the ignition and drove off.

"So what were you doing talking to Alysa?" Troy asked curiously.

"She thought we were dating and I told her no, and then she asked dif I would mind if she asked you out." Gabi explained.

"Me and Alysa? Together? Never! That would just be weird!" Troy said.

Right then something happened inside Gabriella. She felt a wave of relief wash through her. Why did she feel this way?

"Did you even get in the pool at all?" Troy asked.

"Nope. I'm not good at swimming." Gabi answered.

"Who said you actually had to swim. You could just get in and walk around and stuff." Troy told her.

"No, I'm not getting in any pool anytime soon." Gabi said.

"Wait a minute…you're scared of the pool aren't you? For as long as I've known you-which has been since the day you were born- I've never seen you in a pool." Troy asked curiously looking over at her.

"No…I'm not scared." She said looking down at the floor of the car.

"You're lying. I can always tell because you always look down when you're lying." Troy told her. "Now tell me the truth."

"Fine! Alright! I'm scared of the pool. Actually any water like pools, oceans, lakes, rivers, and everything like that." She admitted embarrassed.

"Why? What's so scary about them?" He asked sort of laughing at her.

"Troy! It's not funny! It's because when I was younger my mother told me how my father died from drowning in a pool and how my uncles best friend nearly died from hitting his head on the bottom of the pool his uncle owned. And sometime after that some guy was being mean and he pushed me into the deep end of the pool and I didn't know how to swim. I've had nightmares about drowning ever since!" Gabi explained with tears in her eyes.

Just then she noticed that they were sitting in Troy's car in front of her house (Troy lives right next door!)

"Oh I'm sorry Gabs, I didn't know. I always thought your dad died in a car accident. I mean that's what my parents have always told me." Troy said leaning over and giving her a comforting hug.

"Nope he died from drowning when I was 5. FIVE TROY!! I was only FIVE YEARS old when my daddy died!!" Gabi screamed at him while sobbing.

"Shh shh it's okay." Troy said giving her another hug letting her sob into his shoulder.