Chapter 2

"I don't like the way you're looking at me," Gabriella held her finger up and sent him a scolding glance.

Trey scoffed and rested his head on the kitchen table. "I can't go to school today," he groaned and laid there lifelessly.

She rolled her eyes knowing that try-outs for the basketball team were later that afternoon, "I don't understand what the problem is… just join the team."

"And be a conformist to archaic high school stereotypes?" He furrowed his eyebrows and looked at his mom, "Mom, I am worth so much more than that."

She pushed the cereal box towards him, "Trevor, you are going to school and you're going to have to deal with the Coach."

He pushed himself off of the table. She just didn't understand what basketball meant for him.

"Anyway Trey, It's just basketball," she walked past him and started to pull the curlers out of her hair, "Go make sure your sister's up, I want you guys out of the house in at least thirty minutes."

With a disappointed frown, Trevor Alexander Montez turned away and grabbed his grey sweatshirt. He hated basketball. He hated that he was ridiculously good at the game, and he even hated that everything in his life almost revolved around it.

"TREY!" Taryn was still upstairs getting ready.

"What?" he half muttered, "Mom, says we gotta leave at eight."

"I can't find my cell, call my number," she appeared halfway down the stairs in an old pair of jeans and her favorite 'Paramore' band shirt.

He groaned, "Do we have to do this every morning?" Reaching into his back pocket.

"Just DO IT ALREADY!" She yelled back, running back up to find her phone.

Gabriella was in her room getting dressed as she laughed at her kids banter back and forth, first it was about Taryn's cell phone, which moved onto Trey's driving habits, then evolved into an argument about who was supposed to fill the gas tank last, and then finally a 'Bye Mom' from both of them. She pulled on her heels and checked her image back in the mirror.

She drank the rest of her morning coffee and put the mug into the sink, grabbing her car keys and left the house, noting that Trey hadn't mowed the lawn yet, like she specifically asked him to the week before. She slowly backed up out of their driveway and let her thoughts go on as she drove to work.

Their father was someone that was rarely brought up, and maybe it was a good thing that God blessed her with kids that could read her discomfort in conversation topics like that. Whenever it would be brought up, one would usually hush up the other or change the subject and everything went back to normal. She knew that there was still a void that she couldn't fill, which worried her about being a good mother or not.

"Damn, you always have to come to work looking this good Montez?" Her boss smiled seductively as she entered the firm.

She rolled her eyes and smiled, "Good morning to you too, Ethan."

"Of course," he handed her an file full of more work, "Come by my office this afternoon, we have more business to talk." He saluted her and left.

She shook her head and made her way towards her office.

There they were in Trey's Dodge Charger. He was in the drivers seat, Nathan was in the backseat next to Taryn, who had a hard time ignoring him.

"I'm sorry I beat up your little boyfriend," he had his arms folded and stared at the profile of her face.

Trey watched them from his rear view mirror. He was forcing them to reconcile before school started this week.

His sister was a little less than cooperative, she spent the moment browsing through her phone.

"Taryn, he said he was-"

"Whatever," she rolled her eyes and pushed open the back door, letting herself out.

Nathan gave up, he eventually laid down on the backseat, "Damn, when did she get so feisty."

"I told you she was," Trey drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, "But you just had to fall for the pretty face didn't you? You just had to date her and now every thing's weird."

"Whatever, dude," He held up his fist and flexed it, studying the muscles the bulged out in his arm, "Anyway Coach Bolton is retiring, there's going to be a new coach this year… trying out?"

"Hell no," He pushed the car door open.

Nathan huffed, "Seriously man, you owe me. You have to play this year."

"Look, I can't," he popped open this trunk and grabbed his skateboard, "Not into that bullshit anymore."

His friend shook his head, "I don't even know why you quit in the first place, they were about to make you captain."

Trey shrugged, "I told you."

"Because Bolton said that you might even play better than your Dad?"

"Of my Mom's mistake," he corrected, "I don't want anything to do with the jackass."

"Troy Bolton," Nathan pushed a flyer into his hands, "Mr. MVP of the NBA world himself is coming to replacing his dad, even you can't say no to that."

"Troy Bolton? The Coach's kid?" The one player in the league that he'd looked up to as a child.

He raised his hands, "That's what I said."

Trey shrugged and stepped on his skateboard and pushed away with his left foot, "Maybe I'll check it out, but I don't know."

Troy Bolton. His name rung out high and proud, he was hero to these people, and yet he still felt like a big let down every time he was back and walking around these white and crisp hallways.

Nothing seemed to have changed in the last twenty years. People were still treating him like a celebrity, well, maybe because he sort of was a celebrity, but still… he was the same Troy, and this was the same East High.

"Ms. Montez, may I remind you that decathlon starts today and I will be looking for you there," the overly eager teacher smiled and glanced knowingly at the girl.

Troy snapped his attention back to the brunette and watched her, the girl nodded and walked away quickly, he caught her attention for a while and took the chance to study her.

She glanced up at him strangely until one of her friends pulled her aside. "Taryn, you have got to tell me what happen… all I heard was that David was trying to rape you and Nathan rushed in to rescue you."

"That is ridiculous," she stared at them blankly, "is that what everyone else is saying?"

The cheerleader nodded and they were too far for him to hear the rest of their conversation, he watched her and pushed his thoughts back into where he was, afraid that it would lead into more dangerous memories that he would get stuck in.

"NO CELLPHONES!" Ms. Darbus's shrill voice rang through the hallway. He looked up and saw the drama teacher grabbing the Sidekick away from the student. "Detention for you, young lady."

The girl looked like an upperclassmen, she rolled her eyes and linked arms with the brunette next to her and walked away. When they were in a safe distance the girl pulled out another phone and continued texting away. Ms. Darbus shook her head and looked defeated for the moment until her eyes grew bright again.

"They will never learn will they?" He continued walking and stopped right next to her.

She glanced up at him skeptically through her red-rimmed glasses and said in the same voice she'd used when he wanted to audition for the winter musical with Gabriella during sophomore year, "Troy Bolton."

He nervously raised his arm, "Hi."

"What are you doing here?" She didn't seem as nearly excited as Principal Matsui at his arrival.

"I'm the new soccer and basketball coach." He smiled hoping she'd be a little more thrilled at his presence.

Her face fell, and so did his ego. "Great." She said in monotone, "That was what all the fuss was about this upcoming year? And yet another Bolton in the P.E. department… what in the world was Matsui thinking?" She began rambling on to herself and retreated back to her classroom.

He bit his lip and walked away, the teacher had never been too fond of him. Troy shook off his hurt ego and found the gym's doors. He dug his hands into his pockets and shuffled over to the bleachers, sitting down and staring into the emptiness of the court. And then suddenly the thought of her sprung into his head, and out of all the memories that could came to him that moment it was hers.

"Kiss your boyfriend Gabs, because he has just led the Wildcats to their greatest moment in basketball history!" Chad Danforth lost himself in the hype, caught the beauty and pulled her into a headlock, "You SO need to marry that kid."

"CHAD!" she pushed him away, "You smell really bad!" Gabriella somehow wriggled her way away from him only to have another pair of arms wrap around her waist.

"Don't you look nice tonight?" He leaned in and whispered in her ear and looked at his best friend, "Get off my girl, man." He smiled jokingly and turned back to his girlfriend, "How do you look so perfect after a game?"

Gabriella pulled him away from the crowd and leaned into his lips. "I didn't cheer a lot," she answered in the kiss.

"Well then your not a good cheerleader," he glanced at the red and white uniform skeptically and pulled her in, "You're a better distraction."

"Oh, is that how you're going to explain those two horrible free throws?" She laughed.

He shrugged, "its not like we really needed them anyway right?" He inched his way closer to her soft lips again, only to be interrupted by those people that they called friends.

"So Zeke, what's that thing that people go in when they want a little privacy?" Sharpay and Zeke were deliberately holding a conversation rather loudly right next to them.

"Um, I don't know Shar… away?" he played along.

"You know, that thing that has four walls and a door?"

He shook his head, "Haven't got a clue…"

"Oh come on, You know-"

"A room?" being the class valedictorian, she pulled away from Troy for a bit and answered.

"Yeah!" Sharpay's fake smile grew wider, "You're so smart Gabriella! So GET ONE!"

Troy rolled his eyes and pulled Gabriella away from their group of friends, "She's just jealous that her and Zeke move so slow," he leaned and whispered into her ear, "Let's go get something to eat."

With his eyes glued on the corner that they always met after each game he didn't see the two boys coming in from the other doors.

"So lets see if you still got it, Captain," the obvious basketball jock, passed the ball towards the other kid.

He caught the ball and pulled off his sweat shirt before driving it down the court and dunked on his friend aggressively, "How 'bout that for starters?"

"Dude, you've been practicing at night?"

Troy thought it would be time to let his presence known. He stood up and clapped his hands slowly, climbing over the bleachers to meet the boys on the court. "That was pretty good," he confessed without a smile, "You boys on the team?"

"Troy Bolton," Trey muttered under his breath.

He shook his head, "More like Coach Bolton. I'm your new head coach." He shook Nathan's hand first and paused when he caught familiarities when Trey muttered his name.

"Trey," he mumbled quietly.

"Well you're pretty good Trey," He noted the beat-up skateboard, "what position do you play."

Trey folded his arms squarely, "I don't play."

"TREY COME ON!," Taryn's voice was already there although she was no where to be seen, "Mom's going to kill you if you don't mow the lawn before she gets back."

Troy turned around and found the girl from earlier rushing into the gym. She had an annoyed face and a slightly put off tone in her voice, her frown faded when she identified the third person standing with them.

"Alright, come on," he pulled on his sweater and kicked up his board and tucked it underneath his arm, "See you later Nate… Coach." Trey pulled on her arm until she started to follow him.

"Coach? What happened to Bolton?" She asked rather loudly.

"That's his son," he explained, walking further ahead.

She exited the gym behind him, "That's why he looks so familiar…"

Troy let his eyes linger on the exit for a while until he turned and glanced at Nathan, "You play right?"

He nodded and walked away slowly, "I got to get home too."

I know it's been awhile, but here it is... anyway, I know that Troy and Trey might get confusing but theirs an explanation for that... later.

r and r?