-1Gabriella sat shocked looking at the man who had just bared his soul to her.
"Troy, you're married, you cant be saying things like that." She whispered.
"I know, but I cant help the way I feel about you." He turned to face her once more and looked into her deep meaningful eyes, and saw the sadness that hadn't left since not seeing her for five years.
"We haven't seen each other in a while, how do you know that you're in love with me?"
"Because…I never stopped loving you, ever since we broke up, you were all I could think about, and when I was walking down the aisle, I just.." Gabriella cut him off by putting her hands to his lips, she couldn't hear anymore, she wouldn't here anymore.
"Don't say it!" She yelled at him, causing birds nesting near by to flee from their trees.
He pushed her hand away forcefully, and continued with what he was about to say.
"..wished she was you." The pair sat in silence, every so often a small breeze would pass through into the car.
"Troy, I have to go, I don't want Ryan to worry about me." She went to open the door, she was cold and wanted to get away from Troy, away from the past. That part of her life was over and she hated the fact Troy was ruining everything she had been working towards. Getting over him.
"Just tell me one thing, Gabriella. Before you leave, and when you do I'll leave you and never come back again, I promise." He grabbed her arm, and she froze and looked at Troy's hand wrapped around her wrist.
She sighed. "what is it?"
"Do you ever think about me, and more importantly do you think there is still any love in your heart for me." He looked into her eyes hopefully.
She smiled. "I believe that was two things, Mr. Bolton." He laughed, it was just like old times again.
They stopped laughing and Troy awaited her answer.
"I use to think about you, all the time but it started to become more painful, so I tried to get over you, at first it was hard but when I got to know Ryan, I found out that, there was someone out there who would love me again, and I'd love him." a tear trickled down her cheek. Her heart seemed to be breaking all over again, Troy sitting beside her, looking at her, telling her the things she longed to hear again. But he was too late, she was happy, she was living her life again, and there was no room for Troy. Not anymore.
"you still haven't told me if there was any love in your heart for me." he said.
"Troy, there is always love for you. I've never stopped loving you but I've moved on. And you have too." She looked down and remembered Troy's wife at home sitting in bed worried about her husband.
Troy sniffed and called Triple A. "yeah you're right, I better be going back now, anyway, I've been out too long." he laughed sadly. Triple A, agreed to be there in 30 Minutes.
"I'll wait with you, until they arrive." Gabriella got out the car and stood beside him leaning on the hood of the car.
"what happened to us?" Troy asked after 5 minutes of them looking at the stars lighting up in the night sky.
"We just had to plan for the future, and us going to different colleges meant that we couldn't be with each other anymore. I guess it was fate." Gabriella shivered under Troy's jacket. Troy wrapped his arms around Gabriella, and she gave into his hold and let him.
"I don't believe in fate." Troy whispered into Gabriella's head.
"me neither." Gabriella closed her eyes and took advantage of the smell of Troy, the smell she remember all to well from the days of High School. Her mind instantly coasted back to the day that had change her life forever.
Gabriella raced down the stairs to answer the door, only to find her best friend, Taylor McKessie there.
"hey Taylor, I thought you weren't coming until later on tonight?" She told her friend confusedly.
"I know, I just wanted to tell you some major news." she was almost jumping up and down on the spot.
Gabriella laughed at her friend's excitement. "ok, well come on in but make it quick, Troy's suppose to come over and tell me something important, any moment now." She guided Taylor into the living room of her small house.
"ok well, you know I applied to Yale, Harvard and Princeton, right?"
"oh yeah, you wouldn't shut up about that for months." Gabriella laughed.
"well I got into Yale!" She screamed. And jumped up from the armchair, Gabriella joined her and hugged her tightly.
"that's awesome, Tay! Congratulations!" Gabriella smiled.
"But that's not all, Chad got accepted into the university of Connecticut on a basketball scholarship." Taylor was almost in tears. She couldn't believe her luck, not only was she going to the one of the best college's in the country but her boyfriend was going to be right there alongside of her.
"Wow Taylor." Gabriella exclaimed. There was a knock at the door, Gabriella turned her head and smiled broadly.
"I guess I'm going to go out the back door way, today." Taylor gave her friend a wink and walked to the kitchen out the patio door. Gabriella glanced at her hair in the hallway mirror and opened the door to see her loving boyfriend staring back at her.
She flung her arms around Troy's neck and kissed him passionately on the lips. With all the passion she could muster. Troy wrapped his arms around her waist and guided her back into the house and off of the porch.
After 10 minutes, Troy pulled away and rested his forehead on Gabriella's.
"God, I love you so much." He whispered, keeping his eyes closed.
"I love you too." Gabriella smiled and kissed his nose, she soon noticed a tear escaping from Troy's eyes.
"Babe, what's wrong?" Gabriella dropped her arms from around Troy's neck.
"Gabriella, I need to tell you something." Troy looked her in the eyes.
"yeah, i forgot that's why you're here! Well what is it?"
" I got accepted into university of Albuquerque."
"Troy, that's fantastic, that's where you've always wanted to go!"
" But that means, we wont see each other."
"Oh." She remembered the acceptance letter she got from American musical and dramatic academy ' in New York Last week. It slipped her mind that Troy might be accepted to a different college, even though he had applied to the academy with her.
"When do you have to go?" Gabriella tried to act as if it hadn't fazed her.
" Next week, please Gabriella don't be mad." Troy cupped her face and Gabriella allowed her tears to fall down her face. Troy wiped her tears away, and pushed a strand of hair out of her face.
"I'm not mad, I just I didn't think that college would come up so fast, and I didn't think that it was going to be this hard." Troy kissed her lightly on her lips and reached for her hand. He lead her towards the living room, and sat down in his usual spot on the lavender colored couch. He patted his lap motioning for Gabriella to sit there.
She obeyed him and he wrapped his muscular arms around her petite waist, while she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Troy, I don't think I'll be able to handle being away from you, knowing you will be around many, many girls…" she was cut off by Troy's for finger on her lips.
"Gabriella, you're the only girl for me, I never want anyone else, you are the one I'm going to think about last at night and the first thing I think about when I wake up." He kissed her cheek, and she gave him a smile, but she couldn't shake the nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach.
She couldn't believe the thoughts were running through her head, but she had to tell Troy the truth, after all that was one of the promises they kept to one another.
"Troy, I think it would be a good idea, if we broke up." Gabriella stood up and turned so her back was facing Troy.
"Gabriella? Break up? No No No, we're happy, I'm happy, look we can make it work, we can make it work I promise you." He stood up and grabbed onto her shoulders, but knew there was nothing more he could say, her mind was made up. She took the ring that was occupying her marriage finger and placed it into the palm of Troy's hand.
"I'm sorry, Troy." Tears threatened to fall down the side of her face once more.
He looked at the object that had just been given to him.
"Gabriella, I love you, I know that our love is strong enough to face anything." Troy began to cry. He felt his heart hurt. The love of his life was slipping through his fingers.
Gabriella refused to meet Troy's gaze, fear of having her heart break even more.
She opened the front door. "goodbye Troy."
Troy looked all over the house, knowing it was the last time he would ever see it again.
He stood in front of Gabriella and kissed her, a long kiss. The last kiss.
"I will always love you, Gabriella." and with that he was gone, Gabriella closed the door and heard Troy's car drive off in the distance. She laid on the floor, her back leaning on the door and cried.
"I love you Troy."
The last day at school was a struggle, both Troy and Gabriella ignored one another, every time they saw each other they walked the other way. Their hearts were breaking each moment, of each day. That was the last Troy ever saw his love again.