Chapter 3

"Okay bro...where are they?" Chad asked impatiently, coming down the stairs of the now empty condo carrying the last box to be loaded into the back of his Mustang. "I thought Brie said she and Taylor would only be gone 10 minutes or so?"

"She did," Troy replied, quickly glancing at his watch without the slightest hint of concern. "But you know our women. Ten minutes their time is usually more like 20 in ours. No worries though. I'm sure they'll be back any second now."

"Well they better be," Chad grumbled, sitting the box full of books and pictures down with a sigh. "I'm ready for us to get on the road so we can at least make it back home by early Monday like we planned."

Troy laughed. "Ease up would you. It's not like Gabriella and Taylor have forgotten that we're leaving today. They just went into town to pick up a few things they said we'll need for the road. Trust...both are just as eager as we are to finally get out of here and spend quality time with our families before we leave for Europe the following week."

"I know...I know," Chad conceded, trying to downplay his sudden case of nervousness under the watchful eye of his life-long friend. "I guess I'm just a little anxious is all. Of course the girls will be back soon."

"It's cool," assured Troy with a thoughtful grin, patting his best friend on the back. "I know that lately you've been in high gear protective mode where Taylor's concerned, especially after that whole letter business with Julian. But try not to worry just because they haven't returned yet. I'm sure both she and Brie are fine. I mean...it's not as if Julian is out and about freely roaming the streets, lurking in the shadows waiting to make a move."

"Maybe not, but I still don't trust that he can't get to Taylor or the rest of us considering that maniac knew where to find her after all these years. How many times in the past did we underestimate the reach of his psycho clan only to find ourselves in mortal danger by the same error in judgment?"

Troy shook his head in disbelief that they were even having such a conversation, but inwardly he didn't begrudge Chad his deserved moment of skepticism. After all, he did have a valid point considering they'd all barely made it out of Mexico alive nearly four years ago, when Angelina and her father had tried to finish what Marissa, Mrs. DeLeon, and Julian had failed to accomplish during Senior Weekend.

"I totally understand how you feel man, really I do. But we've come a long way since that crazy time in our lives so I want you to try and chill right now and believe that the girls are fine as we speak and will be walking through that door any minute. Okay?"

Chad sighed deeply, knowing that Troy was right but unable to not harbor even a slight twinge of fear over the safety of the woman he loved more than life itself. It was true that Julian might be the only one left who still held the keys to the DeLeon's tragic history, but the emotional and mental scars left by those events of their senior year at East High and beyond would never completely heal, just live beneath the surface of their hearts and minds.

"Okay. I promise to get it together. The last thing I want is for Taylor to come back and see me acting this way. It's just that every time I think about the look on her face when she showed me Julian's letter, that terror flashing in her eyes, I just want to beat him into a pulp like I tried to do when we were all at my folks' house that time at Thanksgiving."

"I know but that was then and this is now. Our lives are going great and nothing and no one, not even Julian, is going to ruin that for us even with his little attempt at head games," Troy stated with confidence.

"You're right," Chad conceded, beginning to feel much better as his friend's words of comfort washed over him. The last thing I want is to have Tay worrying about me unnecessarily when she doesn't have too. I want her to keep being happy and excited about our trip and not give one minutes thought to any of that horror we went through in the past."

"Good. Glad to hear it," Troy stated with a smile.

Just then he turned his head toward the open front door at the sound of tires crunching up the driveway outside before suddenly coming to a halt. Both he and Chad caught sight of Gabriella and Taylor seated in Troy's jeep dressed in shorts and tank tops with hair pulled back into ponytails, laughing and singing to the radio like they were having the best of times, and it made them both smile from ear to ear.

"Well what do you know. Our late but lovely fiancées have finally arrived. See...I told you...nothing to worry about."

Sensing that they were being spied on, the young women turned in the direction of the two sets of eyes gazing upon them in open admiration, smiled, and then teasingly blew kisses at Chad and Troy with a mischievous giggle.

"Sorry we took longer than expected," Taylor called out, hopping down from the jeep with a grocery bag in one arm while waving at Chad with the other. "You wouldn't believe how crowded the store was so early in the morning."

"Yeah," Gabriella chimed in, reaching in the back of the jeep for her own bag of goodies, which contained all of Troy's favorite snacks. "I thought we were going to have to take out a few old ladies in the Express Lane it was taking so long."

The guys laughed in unison as they watched their fiancées come through the condo's front door.

"Doesn't matter babe," Troy laughed, still surprised by how quickly taken aback he could become at the sight of her natural beauty. "We're just glad you both made it safely. Now, if there isn't anything else on the last minute agenda, do you think our little road trip can finally get underway?"

"Sure thing. But...may I ask..why would you think we wouldn't have made it back safely?" Taylor inquired, walking over to where Chad was standing to give him a kiss in greeting.

"No reason baby...no reason at all," Chad stammered a little too quickly, as he leaned down to pick-up the box at his feet before rushing out the front door to his car.

Knowing him as well as she did, it didn't take but a few seconds for his fiancée to figure out that something had been going on with him just before she and Brie had arrived. Turning to Troy, who was playfully trying to nibble at Gabriella's neck while seeing what she had in her grocery bag, Taylor gave him that "you'd better give me a straight answer or else" look to the question she was about to pose.

"Okay Bolton, spill. What's up with Chad? And don't even try to tell me I'm imaging things either when we both know I'm not."

"Now would I do that to you Taylor McKessie?" Troy asked coyly, quickly glancing over at Gabriella as he began to feel the first beads of sweat forming on his brow from the impromptu interrogation.

"Hell yes. You'd do anything to protect your boy. The two of you can be thick as thieves sometimes."

"Oh and you girls can't?" Troy responded teasingly, as he felt the heat of Gabriella's gaze suddenly turn upon him too for an answer to the question.

"I'm not talking about Brie and I, I'm talking about you and more specifically Chad. Why does he seem a little jumpy?" Taylor was curious to know.

"He's not jumpy. He's just anxious to hit the road is all. Don't read anything more into it than that."

"Oh really? He looked beyond relieved to see me walking through the door from a trip to the store for all of 15 minutes, like he almost expected me to not have come back at all and I'm suppose to just chalk that up to anxiousness?"

"Well...yeah."

"Give me a break Troy. I know Chad better than that," Taylor chastised. "Just tell me what is going on so I can help."

"Okay, okay," Troy sighed, throwing his hands up in defeat. "You're right. Chad was stressing out a bit while you were gone. But everything is good now. He just got a little worried because he's still coming to grips with this whole letter from Julian thing."

"I knew it. I knew he wasn't as okay as he pretended to be even though he promised me that he was."

"Look Tay, could you cut him some slack here," begged Troy. "I know you'll want to assure Chad yet again that Julian isn't a threat and we're all safe from harm, but it isn't so easy for him to fully believe that, even after all this time."

"But why not?" Taylor questioned, unsure of what it was she was missing. "I mean…I know I was freaked out enough for all of us when I got the letter and all, but once you all talked me down, Chad especially, I was cool and haven't worried or wondered about it since. That's why I don't get why Chad would still be having so much trouble with it or concerned about my safety when it was he who said everything was okay."

"Because Chad, I think, has never completely gotten over the guilt of feeling responsible about everything that happened to us all those years ago," Gabriella offered thoughtfully. "Deep down I think he still carries that burden of not having been able to protect you, me, his mom, or anyone else he loves and cares about from people who tried to destroy us all because of Marissa's obsession with him. So, of course, when the last surviving monster from that time in our lives rears its ugly head again and specifically targets you in the bargain, it would be only natural for that long buried guilt within him to resurface and remind Chad of what he considers his failure to prevent what happened before from possibly happening again."

"Do you really think he is still harboring such thoughts?" Taylor asked, her voice filled with shock. "I couldn't bear it to think that after all this time something like this has been eating away at him and causing a self-doubt which is no more his to bear than the rest of us."

"Yes, I do think he has without letting on or showing it," Gabriella admitted. "But the important thing now is for you to convince Chad that it's time to let all that darkness from the past go and realize that the nightmare we went through belongs to all of us not just him, and we all have finally put it behind us where it belongs, in spite of this little stunt of Julian's."

Taylor stood before her best friends in a moment of stunned silence as she absorbed their words about the man she loved. Her heart was pounding, as a suddenly formed knot in her stomach tightened.

They had all been through so much together over the last several years, but nothing as harrowing as what they had experienced at the hands of the DeLeon family. Not even close. It had taken a long time for the nightmare in their minds to end and for their lives to return to normal, but they eventually had. Taylor truly believed that she and Chad, after endless of hours of discussion, had resolved every last one of their demons associated with that time in their lives, but now she came to realize that maybe that wasn't the case after all.

"Say something Tay. You're scaring me," Gabriella prodded, touching her best friend's arm gently. "You okay?"

Taylor, briefly lost in thought, snapped out of her semi-trance and smiled at the question.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Honest. Sorry about zoning out like that for a minute."

"No problem," Troy assured.

"Looks like I'm gonna have to have another talk with Chad so that we can clear this thing up once and for all. The last thing I want is for him to try and start this next great adventure of ours worrying about my safety or giving one second of undeserved thought to the likes of Julian Blanchard," Taylor stated, like a woman whose mind was completely made up. "But I won't do it now. I will, however, make sure it is done before we board that plane to London next Monday."

Just then little huddle of three was suddenly startled by the sound of Chad stomping up to the front door with a loud and pointed sigh.

"Okay people, what in the heck is going on in here that explains why I'm the only one who is outside where everything we own is packed, and the rest of you are still standing in the middle of an empty condo with the only thing left to do is turn off the lights, close the door, and drop off the key to the landlord?"

Troy, Gabriella and Taylor suddenly burst into laughter at the sight of Chad standing before them with hands on hips trying to appear stern in his reproach.

"Awww sweetie we're sorry," Taylor cooed, winking at the others as she walked over to here fiance. "We were just…just reminiscing about all the good times we've had here and how strange it will be not to be coming back next semester."

"Yeah, image how this place is gonna compare to where we're going?" Gabriella spoke up, in an attempt to have her best friend's back. "We may end up living in some dive or something with no say about it whatsoever."

"Let's think positive shall we ladies?" suggested Troy, seeing what the two were doing to ensure that Chad didn't catch on to what had really been talked about before he came inside. "Maybe Sharpay can pull some strings or something and have us staying at some ritzy place everywhere we go. You know…like a high-end time share or something."

For a moment Chad stood there staring at his fiancée and friends, with a look that said "are you seriously telling me the truth or did I just catch you talking about me behind my back?" but in merely a few seconds was swayed from any suspicions he may have held by the dazzle of Taylor's smile which always seemed to distract him when she needed it too most.

"Come on sweetie let's blow this joint" Taylor continued to soothe, linking her arm through Chad's as she steered him back outside, with one last glance over her shoulder at Gabriella and Troy. "I'm ready to hit the road on the start of our next grand adventure."

"Us too," Gabriella called out to their retreating backs.

"I guess this is it huh?" Troy stated with a nostalgic sigh, turning around for one last look at what had been their home away from home. "The good times are moving on?"

Gabriella slipped her hand into his, leaning her head against the broadness of his shoulder.

"Yep they are. But at least they'll be coming with us to Europe and that's all that matters. Right?"

Troy gave her hand a squeeze. "Right."

"So lets you and me get out of here. The open road is calling and I am longing to taste my mom's homemade enchiladas at least one more time before we set foot in the land of tea and crumpets."

"Then hop on my lady for your carriage awaits," Troy directed imitating a crisp British accent with a laugh, turning around and motioning for Gabriella to jump up for a piggyback ride, which she gladly obliged grinning from ear to ear.

And so it was after an 800 mile plus drive over a day and a half with a few tourist stops along the way, that four of the Wildcat eight, Gabriella and Troy in his Jeep and Taylor and Chad in his Mustang, finally pulled up to the front of the Danforth house early Sunday afternoon, where they were immediately greeted by a swarm of anxious parents streaming out of the front door with waves of hello, tearful hugs, and tender kisses.

Barely able to catch their breath, the two couples were shuffled up onto the front porch and into the house, where a delicious buffet of food had been awaiting their arrival along with a ton of questions about their trip. In no time at all, there was a symphony of noise likely to be heard by neighbors around the block as the Danforths, McKessies, Boltons, and Carla Montez and her new boyfriend, Daniel Seville, basked in the happiness of having their children home once again.

The welcome home festivities lasted well into the evening, with Gabriella deciding to stay at Taylor's for the night while Troy and Chad did their best to convince their fiancées that what they needed to do was check into a hotel for both their privacy and sanity, because there was no way anyone's parents were going to allow them to share a bedroom, engaged or not, as they had done all this time while away at school. And even though the arguments in favor of such a move were heartfelt, almost borderline begging, at least for that first night, the girls were able to hold off their guys with the promise to work all that out the following day after they'd settled in and some of the excitement of coming home had died down.

Reluctantly Troy and Chad agreed, but clearly this was a battle that was far from being over. However, they took the verdict in stride and when it was finally time to call it a night, they managed to get Gabriella and Taylor alone for proper good night kisses, which nearly turned into a necking match, and left each couple more than a little hot and bothered. Yes, the sleeping arrangements would most definitely have to be revisited and soon.

Once some of the things Gabriella needed for her sleepover at the McKessie's that night had been transported into the trunk of their car, while Taylor, Chad and Troy remained outside with everyone else still talking, she went back inside to grab her sweater and was surprised to find her mother huddled off in a corner of the kitchen with Daniel whispering nervously. Neither one saw that she'd come back inside and so, unable to keep her curiosity in check, Gabriella quietly eased up within earshot to listen in on the conversation out of concern for the agitated expression she noted on Carla's face.

"I think it's a good idea that your daughter is spending the night with Taylor's family honey. You may need another day or so to deal with that which must finally be shared," Daniel was stating in a soothing voice, his body leaning in close. "Gabriella is not a child but she is also not used to having to share you either."

"Gabriella has always encouraged me to enjoy my life and find happiness with someone else since her father died," Carla replied, with a hint of defensiveness in her tone. "I believe she will be happy about this news once I am able to figure out the right way to tell her."

Gabriella's ears suddenly perked up intensely. Tell me what? She thought, straining to continue to eavesdrop on what was obviously something she needed to hear.

"You are probably right my love," Daniel assured, taking Carla's hand in his own. "But I am more than just a boyfriend now and while that may have been fine for Gabriella to accept before, there is a big difference between that and now being your husband."

At the sound of these words, Gabriella nearly fainted right on the spot.