Troy and Chad made their way into the garage. The noise from inside was a loud humming noise from the engine as Zeke sat on top of the bike and tested it.

"Any progress?" Troy said as he approached Zeke.

"Some not a lot, that last fall you took banged her up real bad." Zeke said looking at Troy with some annoyance. "does be careful mean anything to you?"

"Just fix it before tomorrow's race will you." Troy said walking over to the mini fridge and taking a beer out for himself and one for Chad.

Jason walked into the room with a metal piece in his hand. "Hey guys." He said reaching for his welding tool, "How was the fundraiser."

"A drag." Troy said removing his tie. "Ever since dad's been gone she keeps making these things mandatory." Troy said sitting himself up on a stool, "I get it you know, the whole one day I have to take over but to be honest until then I'd rather just be out of the loop on everything.

Chad placed his hand on his shoulder and sighed. "Worst case scenario, she makes you marry Montez." Chad chuckled and then sat down in a bean bag chair.

"You're so not helping." Troy stood up and walked over to the bike. "Tomorrow I there going to be a new player, word is he's good and I want to be better." Troy said with a small smirk.

"hey by the way that paper for Mr. Richardson is due tomorrow." Chad said looking at Jason then Troy. "What did you guys write about?"

"Caste system." Jason said before pulling down his face mask and starting his welding tool.

"I don't know I have Kelsi working on it." Troy said leaning back to watch Jason work.

"wow, dude I want to be you if just for a day." Chad shook his head with disbelief.

"Trust me you wouldn't like it." Troy said without even looking back at Chad.

Gabriella sat down at the bar looking down into her cup of juice. The atmosphere was filled with business and adult mumbles. The music was slow and there were no words. Sitting there she sighed and looked up into the mirror of her own reflect from behind the bar. Suddenly she found herself thinking about her past. The beginning of all her problems, it wasn't fair to blame him but it wasn't right to not let him carry some of that burden.

Flash back.

"Look at this one, Oh my god! It has man eating zombies." Troy held up the movie and pointed at it with excitement.

"But I want to see this one." She said holding up a romantic comedy.

"Oh come one all those movies are the same." He said rolling his eyes.

"Are not." She said with a shocked expression.

"Oh really, So in this movie the guy and girl don't meet, hate each other, get stuck together on some odd task which brings them closer together, and then leads to them falling for each other only neither one will admit till the very end of the movie when its like ten minutes before the credits roll." Troy said looking down at her movie and tapping the cover.

Gabriella looked at him with a puppy dog face and Troy let out a sigh. "27 dresses it is." He said placing his zombie movie on the rack and wrapping his arm around her. "This is only because I love you so much." He said with a sigh.

"softy." She mumbled with a smirk.

"What can I say?" he said with a shrug as they stood in line. "A movie, popcorn and nice big comfy couch with my girlfriend snuggled by my side." he said looking up to think for a moment. "Doesn't exactly call for zombie movie anyway."

"I love you."

"I love you more."

"Really why is that?" she said turning in the line to look up at him.

"I'm letting you pick the movie for the third time in a roll." He said with a smirk. "that means I love you more tonight."

Flash back ends.

Her finger traced the edge of her glass as she looked down at the liquid. That night seemed so far away from now.

"So alone?"

Gabriella looked up into the brown eyes of a well structured face. he was about her age but she'd never seen him before.

"By choice." She responded looking back at her drink.

"Why?" he said taking the seat at her side.

"Free world last time I checked." She said rolling her shoulder back and looking at people on the dance floor.

"I don't know a beautiful girl alone by choice … sounds like a scorn woman." He said placing his own drink on the counter top.

"So what does that make you?" she said turning to look at him again.

"Someone new in town with no friends and forced to stay at this boring adult party while my parents mingle." He said with a small smile.

Gabriella was silent for a moment. She'd never seen him before at one of these events so he was telling her the truth.

"Gabriella." she said holding out her hand.

"James." He said taking her hand and giving it a firm shake. His eyes looked down at the charm bracelet on her wrist. "This is nice." He said pointing at the bracelet.

"My grandfather gave it to me." she said pulling her hand away slowly and tracing one of the charms with her fingers. "I never leave home without it." she said with a small smile.

"So which one are yours?" Gabriella said pointing to the adults.

"Over there talking to the man with a green suit." He said with a laugh.

"Mr. Thomas." Gabriella said with a nod. "Mine are over there on the dance floor." She said pointing to her mother and father as they danced slowly.

James smiled and looked back at Gabriella. "Well I guess were both alone and miserable."

Gabriella let out a small laugh and then looked back down at her drink.

"You know I heard you sing earlier."

"Did you now?" Gabriella said lifting her arm and placing it at her side.

"Is it your hobby?"

"God no," she said with a snort. "My mother loves music so she makes me take all these classes." She said with a shrug,

"Music is the way to a man's heart. Or a woman." He said in a low voice.

"Not as much as you think."

"so what is it that you do?"

"I couldn't tell you that." she said shaking her head. "It's a secret."